^  i    I 


^Al!!iJJi5J?L?L'3V__- 


;duc.  dept. 


JESUS-THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

**Here  work  enough  to  watch 
The  Master  work,  and  catch 
Hints  of  the  proper  craft,  trieka  of  th$ 
tool's  true  play." 


BOOKS  BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR 

The  Philosopht  of  Education 

The  Psychological  Principles  op  Education 

Idealism  in  Education 

Free  Will  and  Human  Responsibility 

Stoby-Tellino,  Questioning,  and  Studying 

The  Teacher  as  Artist 

The  Leadership  of  Bible  Study  Groups 

Modern  Problems  as  Jesus  Saw  Them 

Jesus — Our  Standard 


•  ••-••     • 


JESUS 
THE  MASTER  TEACHER 


HERMAN  HARRELL  HORNE 
Ph.D.  (Harv.) 

Professor  of  the  History  of  Education  and 
the  History  of  Philosoj)hy»  New  York  University. 


ASSOCIATION  PRESS 

Nbw   York:     347   Madison    Avbnub 
1920 


Copyright,  1920,  by 

Thb  International  Committbb  of 

YouNe  Mbn's  Christian  Associations 


.AiN  UBRARY 


•  •        •    •.  • 


DEDICATED 

TO 

THE  Members  09 
Several  Discussional  Groups  at  Auburn, 
Silver  Bat,  Drew,  Newark,  and  New  York 
University,  Whose  Cooperation  with  Their 
Leader  Has  Helped  to  Make  This  Volume 
Possible 


43785 


T-  f^ 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PASB 

Preface ix 

I .  The  Teaching  Situation 1 

II .  An  Object  Lesson  in  Teaching 4 

III.  How  Did  Jesus  Secure  Attention?.  .  9 

IV.  His  Points  of  Contact 18 

V.  His  Aims 25 

VI.  His  Use  of  Problems 30 

VII.  His  Conversations 39 

VIII .  His  Questions 45 

IX .  His  Answers 53 

X .  His  Discourses 63 

XI.  His  Parables 76 

XII.  His  Use  of  the  Scriptures 93 

XIII.  His  Use  of  Occasion 107 

XIV.  His  Use  op  Apperception Ill 

XV.  His  Use  of  Contrast 116 

XVI.  His  Use  of  the  Concrete 120 

XVII.  His  Use  of  Symbols 126 

XVIII.  His  Imagery 130 

XIX .  Crowds  or  Individuals? 136 

XX.  Education  by  Personal  Association..  143 

XXI .  Motivation 149 


viii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTEB  PAQB 

XXII.  Did    Jesus    Appeal    to    the    Native 

Reactions? 155 

XXIII.  Impbession  and  Expression 170 

XXIV.  His  Attitude  toward  Children 177 

XXV.  His  Qualities  as  Teacher 184 

XXVI.  The  Significance  of  Jesus  in  Educa- 
tional  History 195 

XXVII.  Summary:  Jesus — the  Master  Teacher  204 

Appendix: 

Topics  for  Further  Study 207 

Bibliography 211 


PREFACE 

Glover  writes  in  his  book,  "The  Jesus  of  History" 
(p.  84) :  "I  have  been  treating  him  almost  as  if  he  were 
an  authority  on  pedagogy.  Fortimately,  he  never  dis- 
cussed pedagogy,  never  used  the  terms  I  have  been  using. 
But  he  dealt  with  men,  he  taught  and  he  influenced 
them,  and  it  is  worth  our  study  to  understand  how  he 
did  it — ^to  master  his  methods." 

In  1906  a  volume  of  bibliography  on  "Jesus  Christ 
Our  Lord"  by  S.  G.  Ayers  contained  five  thousand  titles. 
The  name  of  Jesus  is  more  written  about  than  any  other 
in  history.  Where  so  much  has  been  written,  it  is  aston- 
ishing how  little  attention  has  been  paid  to  the  pedagogy 
oljesus.  A  few  books,  like  that  of  Hinsdale,  1895;  a  few 
articles,  Uke  that  by  Ellis,  1902;  and  a  few  occasional 
pages  in  larger  works,  as  in  Wendt,  these  are  all.  The 
bibliography  at  the  end  of  our  own  accompanying  study 
is  conspicuously  and  suggestively  brief.  The  pedagogy  of 
Jesus  is  a  discovered  and  staked-out  but  unworked  mine. 
Let  no  one  try  it  who  is  not  both  a  biblical  scholar  and  an 
educator.  The  following  pages  have  only  scratched  the 
surface  and  uncovered  a  few  leads. 

One  may  well  wonder  why  it  ia  that,  though  books 
have  been  written  about  education  since  the  Republic  of 
Plato  and  about  Jesus  since  the  gospel  of  Mark,  it  is  only 
the  present  generation  that  has  seen  books  written  about 
Jesus  SLA  an  educator.    Perhaps  it  is  because  those  who 

h 


X  JESUS—THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

knew  about  Jesus  did  not  know  about  education,  while 
those  who  knew  about  education  did  not  know  about 
Jesus.  There  may  also  have  been  the  feeUng  that 
reverence  for  Jesus  as  divine  was  inconsistent  with  the 
study  of  his  methods  as  a  hmnan  teacher. 

Probably  an  apology  for  studying  the  pedagogy  of 
Jesus  is  not  demanded  by  our  day.  Some  may  still  feel 
that  Jesus  as  a  teacher  should  be  only  heard,  not  studied. 
But  what  if  studying  his  methods  unstopped  our  ears, 
opened  our  eyes,  increased  our  skill — ^nay,  even  devel- 
oped our  reverence? 

The  aim  of  this  series  of  stn^lies  is  twofold:  first,  im- 
mediately,  to  see  how  Jesus  taught,  or  is  presented  to 
us  as  having  taught,  and,  second,  ultimately,  to  influence 
our  own  methods  of  teaching  morals  and  religion. 

To  accomplish  these  aims  the  apparatus  of  scholarship 
will  be  reduced  to  a  minimum  and  simplicity  of  presenta- 
tion raised  to  the  maximum  possible. 

This  is  not  so  much  a  work  to  be  read,  or  even  a  text  to 
be  studied,  as  a  guide  book  to  be  followed  in  study  classes. 
It  is  especially  designed  for  discussional  groups.  I  have 
declined  to  do  all  the  student's  work  for  him.  The  teach- 
ing attitude  is  maintained  on  almost  every  page. 

The  mode  of  presentation  will,  so  far  as  possible,  make 
the  reader  a  sharer  in  the  process  of  discovering  the 
methods  of  Jesus  as  a  teacher.  This  result  will  be  ac- 
comphshed  by  first  raising  questions,  then  giving  the 
reader  a  chance  to  answer  them  for  himself,  and  then 
presenting  the  material  and  reaching  our  own  conclusion. 

The  literature  of  the  subject,  all  too  brief,  will  be  util- 
ized in  reaching  our  results,  which,  however,  must  rest 


PREFACE  xi 

back  mainly  and  finally  upon  the  four  gospels  themselves 
as  our  source  material. 

Into  the  credibility  of  the  gospels,  especially  the  Fourth 
Gospel,  as  presenting  the  teaching  methods  of  Jesus,  with- 
out, however,  intending  so  to  do,  we  do  not  enter,  as  not 
essential  to  our  twofold  aim  indicated  above. 

Let  me  request  critical  reviewers  not  to  judge  the  book 
by  a  viewpoint  not  its  own,  and  condemn  it  because  it 
does  not  say  what  they  want  said.  Our  viewpoint  is  not 
the  content  of  the  teachings  of  Jesus,  where  all  the  con- 
troversies rage,  but  the  form  in  which  this  content  is 
cast.  Manifestly,  it  would  be  unfair  to  infer  that  the 
author  does  not  hold  certain  Christological  views  be- 
cause he  is  silent  concerning  them,  and  then  condemn 
the  book  because  those  views  were  not  defended. 

This  material  has  previously  been  presented  in  the 
Summer  School  for  Christian  Workers  of  the  Auburn 
(N.  Y.)  Theological  Seminary,  in  the  Southern  Assembly 
at  Monteagle,  Tenn.,  in  the  Eastern  Association  Summer 
School  at  Silver  Bay,  N.  Y.,  in  the  Drew  Theological 
Seminary,  and  in  the  Newark  Community  Training 
School.  It  is  now  put  into  printed  form  "by  request," 
and  also  because  it  is  the  author's  sure  conviction  that 
our  methods  of  moral  and  reUgious  education  will  not 
be  perfected  until  we  have  sat  at  the  feet  of  Jesus — ^the 
Master  Teacher. 

The  quotations  from  President  G.  Stanley  Hall  indi- 
cate that  he  has  helped  me  to  see  Jesus  as  the  Great 
Teacher,  though  I  do  not  accept  his  two  essential  con- 
clusions that  the  real  Christ  is  psychological  and  that 
religion  is  racially  subjective. 


xii  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

In  a  field  of  scholarship  so  old,  and  yet  from  the  stand- 
point of  modern  pedagogy  so  new,  may  I  request  readers 
to  favor  me  with  both  corrections  and  suggestions? 

And  you,  who  at  any  time  have  worked  with  me 
through  portions  of  this  material,  please  receive  this  text 
in  your  hands  with  the  author's  personal  greeting  and 
thanks! 

H.  H.  H. 

Leonia,  N.  J. 

Good  Friday,  1920. 


CHAPTER  I 
THE  TEACHING  SITUATION 

We  are  going  to  study  "how  Jesus  taught."  This  im- 
plies that  he  was  acquainted  with  the  teaching  situation, 
even  that  he  was  a  part  of  it,  and  faced  its  problems; 
that  he  was  confronted  by  the  same  kind  of  difficulties 
in  teaching  as  we,  if  not  the  identical  ones.  That  he 
clearly  sensed  teaching  as  a  problem  appears  in  his  (or 
Mark's?)  parenthetic  injunction:  "Let  the  reader  note 
this*'  (Mark  13:  14,  Moffatt)  and  in  the  Parable  of  the 
Sower,  which  was  not  given  a  title  by  Jesus,  and  which 
might  perhaps  better  be  called  the  Parable  of  the  Soils. 
It  exemplifies  four  kinds  of  pupils. 

Now  what  are  the  elements  essentially  involved  in  the 
teaching  situation? 

It  is  an  easy  question,  and,  if  the  reader  would  be  an 
independent  student,  let  him  pause  here  and  first  make 
the  analysis  for  himself,  and  then  read  on.  It  will  help 
you  to  recall  the  famous  definition  of  a  college  (who  said 
it  first?)  as  Mark  Hopkins  on  one  end  of  a  log  and  Gar- 
field on  the  other.  But  though  the  "Log  College"  is 
famous  in  Princeton  history,  the  college  on  a  log  is  no 
longer  reputable  in  these  days  of  rich  endowments. 

The  teadiing  situation  involves:  (1)  a  teacher  (Hop- 
kins); (2)  a  pupil  (Garfield),  or  pupils;  (3)  environment 
(the  log),  which  may  be  amplified  to  include  classroom, 
laboratory,  library,  apparatus,  etc.,  even  the  social  milieu; 

1 


2        :  ;/JlSSlJS~yTHE  MA^jTER  TEACHER 

(4)  curriculum,  or  thing  taught;  (5)  aim,  or  that  which 
the  teacher  would  accomplish  by  means  of  instruction  in 
the  life  of  the  pupil,  and  (6)  method,  or  the  way  of  the 
process. 

Can  you  think  of  any  additional  essential  thing,  like 
organization,  management,  discipline? 

Or,  can  these  six  be  further  reduced? 

Were  the  teaching  situations  in  which  Jesus  found 
himself  ever  complex  enough  to  contain  these  six  ele- 
ments? The  scene  of  Jesus  and  Nicodemus,  perhaps, 
under  the  olive  trees  at  night  on  the  mount  near  Jeru- 
salem, is  similar  to  Hopkins,  Garfield,  and  the  log, 
Jesus  was  the  teacher,  addressed  by  the  pupil,  Nicode- 
mus, thus:  "Rabbi,  we  know  you  have  come  from  God 
to  teach  us."  The  environment  is  that  night  scene, 
protecting  a  distinguished  but  timid  and  fearful  pupil. 
The  subject  of  instruction  is  "the  birth  from  above." 
The  aim  of  the  teacher  was,  probably,  to  effect  a  great 
change  in  the  life  of  his  pupil.  (Was  this  aim  accom- 
plished? See  John  7:  50  and  19:  39.)  The  method  used 
was  conversation,  including  question  and  answer  and  a 
remarkable  concrete  illustration  of  the  working  of  the 
Spirit  (John  3:8),  and  the  exhibition  of  surprise. 

At  this  point  pause  a  few  minutes  and  analyze  another 
one  of  the  teaching  situations  in  the  life  of  Jesus,  e.  g., 
that  with  the  Woman  of  Samaria  (John  4: 1-42)  or  that 
of  the  Great  Confession  (Matt.  16: 13-28). 

In  fact,  would  it  not  help  us  to  make  a  list  as  complete 
as  possible  of  all  the  leading  teaching  situations  in  the 
life  of  Jesus? 

Would  it  be  proper  to  regard  the  miracles  he  wrought 


THE  TEACHING  SITUATION  3 

as  teaching  situations?  (For  answer,  see  Mark  2: 10  and 
study  Luke  5: 1-11.)    Why? 

If  the  miracle  situation  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  pri- 
marily a  teaching  situation,  may  it  be  so  regarded  in  a 
secondary  sense?  Why?  This  question  implies  that  the 
miracles  may  have  taught  the  people  lessons  without 
being  wrought  mainly  for  that  purpose.  If  not  to  teach, 
what  was  the  main  purpose  of  the  miracle?  This  ques- 
tion may  be  passed  over  as  irrelevant  for  the  present, 
though  important. 

We  get  the  unavoidable  impression  that  Jesus  was  re- 
peatedly involved  in  teaching  situations  and  that  in  each 
of  these  some  method  or  methods  were  used.  Passing 
by  for  the  most  part  the  other  five  elements  in  the  teach- 
ing situation,  the  following  studies  will  concentrate 
mainly  on  the  methods  Jesus  used  as  a  teacher.  There  is 
no  reason  why  a  corresponding  study  should  not  be  made 
of  each  of  the  other  five  elements.  Why  should  not 
somebody  undertake  it? 


CHAPTER  n 
AN  OBJECT  LESSON  IN  TEACHING 

Later  we  shall  take  one  principle  of  teaching  and  seek 
illustrations  of  it  in  the  work  of  Jesus.  Now  we  propose 
at  the  outset  to  take  one  section  of  his  work,  a  unity  in 
itself,  and  find  in  it  some  of  the  principles  and  methods 
of  teaching  he  utilized.  It  will  give  us  an  aviator's  view 
of  the  field. 

Not  that  Jesus  ever  taught  to  give  us  an  object  lesson 
in  teaching,  though  he  did  wash  the  disciples'  feet  to 
give  them  an  object  lesson  in  humility,  but  that  we  can 
use  such  masterly  lessons  as  he  gave  his  pupils  as  models 
for  our  own  study. 

What  would  be  a  good  illustration  to  take?  Select 
your  own  and  find  in  it  all  the  principles  of  teaching  you 
can. 

Let  us  choose  John  4: 1-43. 

Topic:  How  Jesus  Taught  the  Woman  of  Samaria. 

1.  Here  we  have  a  complete  teaching  situation,  with 
master,  pupil,  environment,  subject  matter,  aim,  and 
method.  Jesus  is  the  master,  the  woman  of  Samaria  is 
the  pupil,  Jacob's  well  is  a  part  of  the  environment,  the 
water  of  life  is  a  part  of  the  subject  matter,  the  trans- 
fonning  of  a  life  is  the  aim,  and  what  are  the  methods? 

2.  The  Master  utilized  an  occasion  as  it  arose,  though 
he  was  weary  with  his  journey,  and  it  was  the  noon- 
hour,  and  she  was  a  Samaritan  and  a  woman,  and  sinful. 

4 


o  »      >  »   » 


From  painting  by  Ilofmann  Cupfjiif/fd,  lUUh,  by  Eugene  A.  Perry 

JESUS   AND    THE    WOMAN    OF    SAMARIA 


AN  OBJECT  LESSON  IN  TEACHING  5 

» 
There  were  several  reasons  why  he  might  have  let  this 
occasion  slip,  but  not  so.    "There  cometh  a  woman." 

3.  He  established  a  ipoini  of  contact  She  had  evidently 
come  to  draw  water.  "Jesus  saith  unto  her.  Give  me  to 
drink."    He  was  thirsty;  it  was  a  natural  request. 

4.  He  had  her  attention  and  interest  from  the  start.  He 
had  done  an  unexpected  and  unusual  thing.  He  utilized 
"surprise  power."  Though  a  Jew,  he  had  spoken  to  a 
Samaritan.  This  attention  and  interest  are  sustained 
throughout,  even  increasing  in  concentration  and  in- 
tensity as  slumbering  impulses  are  awakened. 

5.  He  used  the  conversational  method.  Seven  times  he 
addressed  her  and  six  times  she  replied,  the  arrival  of  the 
disciples  interrupting  the  conversation. 

6.  He  was  here  dealing  with  an  individtialy  though 
thereby  the  way  was  opened  to  deal  with  the  crowds  of 
the  city  for  two  days. 

7.  He  exemplified  the  principle  of  personal  association, 
for  a  brief  time,  by  intimate  converse  with  a  woman  who 
was  a  sinner,  thereby  causing  his  disciples  to  marvel. 

8.  He  asked  her  no  question,  but  he  answered  three  of 
her  explicit  questions,  as  well  as  the  deepest  longing  of 
her  nature.  He  built  upon  her  answers  and  made  the 
most  of  them:  "In  that  saidst  thou  truly." 

9.  There  are  problems  at  the  basis  of  this  teaching. 
First,  there  is  the  personal  problem  of  the  woman's  life. 
Who  was  more  conscious  of  this  at  the  first,  the  woman 
or  Jesus?  It  was  his  object  to  awaken  her  conscience. 
Then  there  is  the  theological  problem,  felt  and  stated  by 
the  woman:  Where  shall  God  be  worshiped?  She  seems 
to  have  introduced  this  problem  as  a  distraction  from  the 


d  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

personal  issue,  but  the  answer  of  Jesus,  "in  spirit  and  in 
truth,"  reopened  the  personal  problem. 

Are  there  still  other  problems  here?    What? 

10.  His  reply  concerning  the  nature  of  worship  and 
God  is  perhaps  long  enough  to  be  regarded  as  the  nucleus 
of  a  private  discourse,  with  a  single  auditor.  How  did 
John  learn  about  this  conversation,  do  you  suppose? 

11.  There  is  the  use  of  apperception  in  passing  from 
water  to  "living  water,"  yet  it  is  clear  that  even  so  the 
woman  did  not  understand.  (See  v.  15.)  There  is  apper- 
ception also  in  Jesus  declaring  himself  to  be  the  Messiah 
to  one  who  said  she  knew  that  Messiah  cometh  (w.  25, 
26),  and  this  time  she  evidently  understood. 

12.  His  use  of  the  concrete  appears  in  "to  drink,"  "this 
water,"  "thy  husband,"  "five  husbands,"  "this  moun- 
tain," "Jerusalem,"  "I  am  he."  The  concrete  water  of 
Jacob's  well  was  used  to  illustrate  the  abstract  water  of 
Ufe. 

13.  His  use  of  contrast  appears  in  the  difference  be- 
tween **this  water,"  after  taking  which  one  thirsts  again, 
and  his  living  water,  after  drinking  of  which  one  shall 
never  thirst  (w.  13,  14).  Also  between  the  ignorant 
worship  of  the  Samaritans  and  the  intelligent  worship  of 
the  Jews  (v.  22). 

14.  His  use  of  motivation  appears  in  the  awakening 
first  of  interest  and  then  of  conscience  and  finally  of 
service.  The  conversation  concerning  water  awakened  in- 
terest, that  concerning  the  husband  awakened  conscience, 
that  concerning  true  worship  awakened  service.  She  car- 
ried back  in  haste  to  the  city  not  the  waterpot  she  had 
brought  forth,  but  the  living  water. 


AN  OBJECT  LESSON  IN  TEACHING  7 

15.  Jesus  secured  expression  from  this  voluble,  motor- 
minded  woman,  first  in  words  and  then  in  deeds.  He 
pierced  the  crust  of  her  encased  conscience  by  a  com- 
mand to  act:  "Go,  call  thy  husband,  and  come  hither." 
A  motor  command  which  could  not  be  executed  is  the 
profound  way  in  which  the  Master  threw  this  precipitate 
will  back  upon  itself  in  shame  and  confusion.  Unintelli- 
gently  she  said:  "Sir,  give  me  this  water";  intelli- 
gently she  said:  "Sir,  I  perceive^hat  thou  art  a  prophet." 
From  superficial  questions  of  curiosity  her  self-expression 
passes  to  serious  concern  in  personal  and  religious  matters, 
and  finally  to  the  ministry  of  Sychar. 

16.  Some  striking  charax;tenstics  of  Jesus  as  a  teacher 
appear  in  this  incident,  such  as  his  disregard  of  current 
conventionality  in  talking  with  a  Samaritan  and  a  woman 
and  a  sinner;  the  absence  of  false  modesty;  intimate 
knowledge  of  his  pupil  (how  did  Jesus  know  the  woman 
had  had  five  husbands?);  profoundest  knowledge  of  his 
subject — the  nature  of  God  as  spiritual;  the  demon- 
strated ability  to  teach;  prophecy — "the  hour  cometh"; 
and  self-assertion:  "I  that  speak  unto  thee  am  he." 

What  impressions  do  you  get  from  this  evidence  of 
teaching  method  in  a  single  incident.'* 

Do  you  feel  that  any  one  of  these  sixteen  points  is  not 
really  to  be  found  in  the  case? 

Would  you  add  still  other  evidence  of  teaching  method? 

Take  another  one  of  the  several  longer  conversations  of 
Jesus,  and  see  what  principles  of  teaching  you  can  find 
there  also. 

Is  it  better  to  study  one  teaching  incident  in  the  light 
of  the  principles  or  to  study  one  principle  at  a  time  in 


8  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

>       ■ 
the  light  of  many  illustrative  incidents?    In  the  former 

case  there  is  repetition  of  principles  as  we  pass  from 
incident  to  incident;  in  the  latter  case  there  is  repetition 
of  references  to  the  same  incidents  as  we  pass  from  prin- 
ciple to  principle.  Which  method  does  this  book  mainly 
follow? 

Take  the  conversation  with  Nicodemus  and  work  out 
results  similar  to  the  ones  above.  / 


CHAPTER  m 
HOW  DID  JESUS  SECURE  ATTENTION? 

When  one  mind  approaches  another  for  any  reason,  the 
first  thing  to  do  is  to  catch  attention.  Ordinarily  in 
human  intercourse  this  is  done  by  a  word,  gesture,  or 
touch.  The  need  of  winning  attention  and  of  keeping  it 
is  felt,  not  only  by  the  teacher  before  his  class,  but  by 
the  preacher  before  his  congregation,  the  lecturer  before 
his  audience,  the  lawyer  before  his  jury,  the  salesman 
before  his  purchaser,  and  the  writer  and  the  advertiser, 
though  only  the  printed  page  is  before  their  readers. 
Anybody  who  influences  anybody  else  must  first  have 
their  attention. 

Did  Jesus  have  the  attention  of  his  auditors,  even  of 
those  who  did  not  hear  him,  but  only  heard  of  him? 
Who  since  his  day  or  before  has  so  had  the  attention  of 
mankind?  Stop  a  few  minutes  to  think  your  answers  to 
these  questions. 

Now  why  was  this?  How  did  Jesus  so  capture  the 
attention  of  his  generation,  and,  we  may  add,  of  all  gen- 
erations?   For  he  is  a  teacher  of  the  world. 

Before  answering  this  question  directly,  we  must  ap- 
proach it  by  asking  another:  What  kind  of  attention  did 
people  give  Jesus? 

I  Voluntary. 
Attention  4     With  effort. 
,  Involimtary. 

Without  the  sense  of  effort. 
With  interest. 


10  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

This  diagram  shows  us  the  two  main  kinds  of  attention. 
One  is  voluntary,  given  with  a  sense  of  effort,  because 
the  object  attended  to  is  uninteresting  in  itself,  though 
recognized  as  important.  Or,  voluntary  attention  may  be 
given  through  fear  of  the  consequences  of  inattention. 
Thus  a  boy  may  give  voluntary  attention  to  the  multipli- 
cation table. 

Involuntary  attention  is  that  given  without  the  sense 
of  effort  to  an  object  interesting  in  itself.  It  may  lead  one  to 
put  forth  much  endeavor,  but  without  the  hard  sense  of  ef- 
fort.   So  one  may  read  an  interesting  story  till  late  at  night. 

There  are  refinements  upon  these  two  kinds  of  atten- 
tion which  the  psychologists  make,  into  which,  however, 
we  do  not  need  to  go.  For  example,  some  loud,  sudden 
stimulus,  as  the  banging  of  a  door,  may  make  us  attend 
involuntarily.  And  attention  that  began  by  being  vol- 
untary may,  through  the  awakening  of  interest  in  the 
subject,  pass  into  the  involuntary,  as  Latin  composition 
may  become  more  interesting  as  we  proceed  to  master 
it  by  effort.  It  is  also  to  be  noted  that  involuntary  at- 
tention may  lead  us  to  expend  considerable  energy,  but 
such  expenditure  is  not  accompanied  by  the  distasteful 
sense  of  effort.  Thus  an  interesting  walk  may  take  us 
farther  and  with  less  fatigue  than  an  unwelcome  errand. 

Psychologists  have  a  way  of  giving  familiar  terms  some- 
what unfamiliar  meanings.  We  may  not  like  this,  but  it 
is  an  aid  to  definiteness  in  psychological  science.  For 
example,  we  may  ordinarily  thJnk  of  a  thing  done  volun- 
tarily as  done  willingly  and  done  involuntarily  as  done 
unwillingly.  Thus,  if  a  boy  goes  voluntarily  to  school, 
he  does  not  have  to  be  sent.    But  these  meanings  do  not 


HOW  DID  JESUS  SECURE  ATTENTION?     11 

fit  voluntary  or  involuntary  attention;  rather  the  op- 
posite. Voluntary  attention,  with  effort,  may  be  atten- 
tion given  unwillingly,  while  involuntary  attention,  with 
interest,  is  likely  to  be  given  willingly. 

Now,  in  the  light  of  these  brief,  bare  statements  about 
attention,  what  kind  of  attention  did  Jesus  receive? 
What  kind  did  his  disciples  (learners)  give  him?  What 
kind  did  the  Pharisees  give  him?  Who  that  came  to  scoflf 
remained  to  pray?  With  what  kind  of  attention  did  they 
begin  and  end? 

These  questions  you  will  probably  find  no  trouble  in 
answering  yourself.  Jesus  received  both  kinds  of  atten- 
tion. His  willing  disciples  attended  involuntarily.  His 
unwilling  auditors  and  critics,  hearing  him,  not  because 
they  wanted  to  obey,  but  to  entrap  him  in  his  talk,  gave 
voluntary  attention.  Pilate's  wife,  but  glimpsing  him 
perhaps,  gave  involuntary  attention.  Pilate,  with  no 
interest  in  the  proceedings  instituted  by  the  ecclesiastical 
Jews,  but  rather  a  distaste  for  the  whole  business,  gave 
voluntary  attention.  Those  sent  to  take  him,  returning 
without  him,  but  with  the  reason  that  "never  man  so 
spake  as  this  man,"  began  with  voluntary  and  ended 
with  involuntary  attention,  as  did  those  Jews  who  be- 
lieved in  him  secretly,  not  openly,  for  fear  of  the  ridicule 
of  their  fellows.  The  multitude  gave  him  involuntary 
attention,  "hearing  him  gladly."  His  fellow-townsmen, 
with  "eyes  fastened  upon  him"  in  the  synagogue,  began 
by  giving  him  involuntary  attention,  though  it  passed 
into  attention  of  the  voluntary  type  as  they  drew  back 
from  the  greatness  of  his  claim.  Some  of  these  state- 
ments may  upt  be  just  correct. 


n  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

What  kind  of  attention  was  tjbat  of  Nicodemus?  of 
the  woman  of  Samaria?  of  the  men  of  Sychar?  of  the 
Gadarenes?    of  Herod?    of  Mary,  the  sister  of  Lazarus? 

Now,  how  did  Jesus  secure  attention?  It  was  no  great 
problem  to  him.  "He  could  not  be  hid."  He  secured 
attention  because  first,  there  were  many  things  about 
him  to  interest  people;  second,  he  knew  what  to  do  to 
get  attention. 

What  are  some  of  the  things  he  did  to  get  attention? 

He  caUed  for  it.  "Hear,"  "hearken,"  "behold,"  "give 
ear,"  he  would  say. 

He  announced  his  coming  to  any  city  by  messengers 
in  advance,  sending  forth  the  disciples  into  every  city 
whither  he  himself  was  about  to  come. 

He  utilized  posture — ^not  that  he  ever  posed.  "When 
he  was  set  [the  position  of  the  Oriental  teacher],  his 
disciples  came  unto  him,  and  he  opened  his  mouth,  and 
taught  them."  He  would  sit  in  a  boat  on  the  lake  and 
teach  people  on  the  shore. 

He  spoke  in  concrete,  pictorial,  imaginative  language, 
which  easily  catches  and  holds  the  attention,  as  a  moving 
picture  does  today.  The  phrase  "fishers  of  men"  may 
rivet  the  attention  like  a  fixed  idea. 

He  used  the  famiUar  to  explain  the  unfamiliar.  Thus, 
he  said  men  do  not  put  new  wine  into  old  bottles  to  explain 
why  he  and  his  disciples,  contrary  to  the  custom  of  John 
and  his  disciples,  did  not  fast.  Professor  James  says: 
"The  new  in  the  old  is  what  excites  interest."  Did  Jesus 
exemphfy  this  canon?    Can  you  illustrate  your  answer? 

In  teaching  he  did  not  belabor  a  point,  but  passed 
quickly  from  one  phase  to  another  of  his  general  topic. 


HOW  DID  JESUS  SECURE  ATTENTION?     13 

Thus,  the  different  brief  beatitudes.  So,  too,  parables 
were  spoken  successively,  one  story  after  another,  as 
The  Lost  Sheep,  The  Lost  Coin,  The  Lost  Son.  Here  is 
unity  in  variety.  Professor  James  also  says:  "The  sub- 
ject must  change  to  win  attention.'*^  Does  Jesus  exem- 
plify this  maxim?    Can  you  give  other  illustrations? 

Jesus  also  won  attention  because  his  teaching  was  so 
different  from  that  of  the  scribes.  "He  taught  them  as 
one  having  authority  and  not  as  their  scribes."  Why 
will  men  listen  more  readily  to  one  who  speaks  with 
authority  (the  prophet)  than  to  one  who  speaks  for  the 
authorities  (the  priest)  ? 

We  may  also  say  that  Jesus  received  attention  because 
he  paid  attention.  He  saw  and  was  interested  in  what 
people  were  doing  and  saying,  and  in  their  needs,  and  in 
helpful  sympathy  he  drew  his  soul  out  unto  them.  His 
works  prepared  the  way  for  his  words. 

And  people  gave  him  attention  because  he  was  a  peri- 
patetic teacher.  He  taught  as  he  journeyed  from  place 
to  place.  "We  must  go  also  into  tjbe  next  towns,"  he  would 
say.  Protagoras,  the  Greek  Sophist,  and  Aristotle,  the 
Greek  philosopher,  walked  with  their  pupils  within  en- 
closures. Jesus  walked  with  his  pupils  in  the  open, 
carrying  his  good  news  to  all. 

But  mainly  Jesus  won  attention  because  of  that  com- 
plex thing,  covering  a  number  of  the  preceding  points 
and  others  besides,  which  we  call  f>ersonal  magnetism. 
The  sum  of  his  qualities  made  him  unique,  matchless, 
winsome.    People  would  say  he  had  not  learned  letters 


1  Sec  James,  "Talks  to  Teachers,'!  Chaps.  X  and  XI. 


14  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

in  the  rabbinical  school  in  Jerusalem,  that  he  came  from 
GaHlee,  not  Judea,  that  he  was  a  Nazarene,  that  he  was 
more  than  a  match  for  the  scribes,  that  he  was  followed 
by  crowds,  and  that  he  was  always  doing  and  saying 
wonderful  things.  In  short,  it  was  the  personality  of 
Jesus  that  attracted  the  attention  of  men. 

Not  that  Jesus  was,  and  did,  and  said,  all  these  things 
consciously  and  intentionally  to  get  the  attention  of  men. 
Winning  and  keeping  attention  was  probably  no  conscious 
problem  to  him  at  all.  He  simply  and  naturally  did 
those  attention-winning  things  which  poorer  teachers 
must  do  with  set  pm-pose.  Thus  we  must  consciously 
imitate  him  as  our  unconscious  model. 

Can  you  now  think  of  still  other  ways  in  which  Jesus 
won  attention? 

The  point  that  it  was  mainly  through  personal  mag- 
netism that  Jesus  secured  attention,  just  as  any  good 
painting  of  him  today  arrests  our  attention,  leads  ush 
naturally  to  ask:  What  in  Jesus  interested  people.^ 

Suppose  you  had  the  privilege  of  preferring  one  request 
to  Jesus  face  to  face,  what  would  it  be?  Or,  of  asking 
him  one  question,  what  would  it  be?  What  question 
would  you  like  to  ask  Socrates?  Think  the  answers  to 
these  questions.  They  will  disclose  to  you  the  deeper 
sources  of  your  own  interest  in  Jesus. 

The  personality  of  Jesus  was  so  striking  that  men,  with 
their  expectation  of  a  Messiah  to  come,  would  say  of  him, 
"Can  this  be  Messias?"  "When  Messias  cometh,  will  he 
do  more  wonderful  things  than  this  man?"  But  others 
would  say,  "He  is  a  Samaritan  and  hath  a  devil."  So 
the  people  of  Palestine  were  interested  to  place  Jesus 


HOW  DID  JESUS  SECURE  ATTENTION?     15 

correctly,  in  their  view  of  life.  It  was  the  habit  of 
Jesus  to  let  the  people  freely  see  in  him  the  Messiah 
for  whom  they  looked,  rather  than  publicly  to  proclaim  it, 
though  he  did  the  latter  also,  by  implication,  in  the  Naza- 
reth synagogue.    So  his  Messiahship  interested  the  people. 

Along  with  this  went  his  claim  to  be  able  to  forgive 
sins  on  earth.  He  even  taught  his  disciples  to  bind  and 
to  loosen  on  earth.  This  is  an  arresting  claim  which 
would  naturally  concern  the  people  in  a  practical  way 
and  their  rulers  in  a  theological  way. 

Then,  too,  the  exalted  content  of  his  message  inter- 
ested the  people.  Accustomed  to  legalism  as  they  were, 
here  was  a  teaching  of  love  that  fulfilled  all  law,  of  mercy 
that  was  more  than  animal  sacrifice,  of  a  loving  Father 
who  saved  and  did  not  condemn  the  world. 

Also  they  were  attracted  by  the  wonderful  signs  he 
wrought,  which  he  did  in  loving  and  helpful  sympathy, 
not  at  all  to  convince  people  of  his  Messiahship.  In  fact, 
the  crowds  would  so  follow  him  because  of  his  wonderful 
works  and  to  get  the  loaves  and  fishes  and  be  filled,  that 
it  was  his  custom  often  to  forbid  the  miraculously  healed 
people  to  tell  any  man.  This,  however,  only  caused  some 
to  publish  it  yet  the  more.  So  the  fame  of  him  would 
spread  as  a  wonder-worker,  but  he  knew  the  people  and 
would  not  trust  himself  to  those  who  had  no  better  basis 
for  belief  in  him.  So  Herod  in  his  palace  had  heard  of 
him  and  had  desired  in  kingly  curiosity  to  see  some 
magical  work  by  him.  This,  together  with  Herod's  evil 
treatment  of  John,  so  filled  Jesus  with  indignation  and 
contempt  that  "he  answered  him  never  a  word."  It  was 
one  of  the  times  when  even  the  silence  of  Jesus  spoke 


16  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

with  flaming  tongue.  But  unquestioaiably  the  people 
were  interested  in  Jesus  as  a  wonder-worker,  though  he 
did  not  care  for  such  regard. 

A  thing  which  always  characterized  Jesus,  and  which 
never  failed  to  interest  high  and  low  alike,  was  his  social 
freedom.  He  mingled  with  pubUcans  and  sinners,  ate 
with  them,  received  them,  was  known  as  their  "friend," 
and  so  scandalized  the  leaders.  But  he  was  equally  at 
home  in  the  house  of  Simon  the  Pharisee  at  Bethany,  and 
while  there  permitted  gracious  social  attention  from  a 
forgiven  sinful  woman.  Besides,  though  keeping  both 
letter  and  spirit  of  the  law  of  Moses,  he  paid  no  attention 
to  the  traditions  of  the  elders  about  ceremonial  cleansings 
of  pots  and  vessels,  and  eating  with  washed  hands,  and 
not  husking  grain  on  the  Sabbath  day,  and  the  like.  He 
was  above  the  established  good  usage,  both  religious  and 
social,  of  his  day.  This  social  freedom  which  he  exempH- 
fied  interested  everybody. 

What  additional  things  about  Jesus  would  naturally 
interest  people  .^^  The  fact  that  to  some  he  extended  a 
definite  call  to  be  with  him.f^  His  moral  earnestness.'' 
How  would  you  explain  the  fact  that  the  young  fisher- 
men accepted  his  invitation  at  once?  How  that  the 
young  ruler  declined?  What  do  you  suppose  would  have 
happened  if  Jesus  and  Saul  of  Tarsus  had  met  face  to 
face  in  the  flesh?  What  do  you  think  would  happen  now 
if  Jesus  should  visit  in  the  flesh  one  of  our  towns  or  cities, 
as  he  visited  Capernaum  or  Jerusalem?  Would  he  have 
our  attention?  In  what  about  him  would  modern  Amer- 
icans be  interested?  How  much  has  human  nature 
changed  in  nineteen  centuries? 


HOW  DID  JESUS  SECURE  ATTENTION?     17 

We  have  now  seen  in  a  measure  how  the  problem  of 
attention  and  interest  was  solved  in  the  teaching  of 
Jesus.  Make  a  list  of  the  points  he  exemplified  which 
we  may  imitate  more  or  less  in  our  work  as  teachers. 
Do  you  find  that  it  brings  Jesus  too  near  or  makes  him 
too  real  in  flesh  and  blood  to  study  him  in  this  way?  If 
so,  be  patient  till  you  are  through,  and  then  see  what 
happens. 

What  was  the  effect  on  the  lives  of  Peter,  Andrew, 
James,  John,  and  the  other  disciples,  of  their  interest  in 
Jesus?  Did  following  out  this  interest  soften  and  weaken 
their  fives?  Is  it  only  by  doing  hard,  disagreeable  tasks 
that  our  fives  are  disciplined?  Is  there  a  discipline  of 
higher  interest  as  well  as  of  effort?  Did  Jesus  assign 
weary  tasks  as  such  to  discipline  his  pupils?  Think  out 
these  answers,  and  recall  present-day  discussions  about 
the  "soft  pedagogy"  of  interest  and  the  "hard  pedagogy" 
of  effort  and  discipline. 

What  do  you  think  of  this  conclusion:  The  interest  of 
his  learners  in  Jesus  led  them  to  make  the  supreme  effort 
of  their  fives?  As  fishermen  they  would  never  have  ex- 
pended nervous  and  muscular  energy  to  the  same  extent 
that  they  did  as  followers  of  Jesus.  The  pedagogyjof 
Jesus  was  not  the  soft  pedagogy  of  interest  alone,  nor  the 
hard  pedagogy  of  discipline  and  effort  alone,  but  the 
combined  pedagogy  of  effort  through  interest. 

For  a  discussion  of  Attention,  see  one  of  several  mono- 
graphs on  the  subject,  as  those  by  Titchener  or  PiUsbury, 
or  any  standard  psychology,  as  those  by  James,  Ladd, 
or  Angell,  or  any  educational  psychology,  as  those  by 
Thorndike,  Starch,  or  Home. 


CHAPTER  IV 
HIS  POINTS  OF  CONTACT 

It  is  essential  in  all  effective  teaching  that  points  of 
contact  be  established  between  teacher  and  taught.  By 
a  "point  of  contact"  in  teaching  we  mean  how  minds 
come  to  meet,  the  common  meeting  places  of  mind  with 
mind.  Just  as  we  "rub  elbows"  in  the  physical  world, 
so  minds  have  points  of  contact  in  the  mental  world. 
Usually  these  points  of  contact  are  matters  of  common  or 
joint  interest.  The  one  who  establishes  the  point  of 
contact  knows  the  other  so  well  or  so  sympathetically 
that  he  catches  him  where  he  lives.  To  do  this  involves 
adaptability  and  tact  on  the  part  of  the  teacher.  He 
must  be  thinking  about  his  pupils  or  his  auditors  or  the 
other  fellow,  as  well  as  about  what  he  himself  has  to  say 
or  do.  It  is  very  difficult  for  a  self-conscious  or  an  awk- 
ward person  to  make  contacts.  He  is  like  a  defective 
electric  light  bulb — ^there  may  be  physical  contacts,  but 
no  flashes  of  light.  Can  you  recall  some  one  who  is 
happy  in  establishing  points  of  contact?  How  does  he  do 
it? 

That  such  mental  meeting  places  are  requisite  at  the 
opening  of  any  exchange  of  ideas  is  obvious.  Without 
them  the  auditor  may  or  may  not  be  a  party  to  the 
transaction,  what  is  said  may  go  "over  his  head,"  or 
make  no  real  appeal  to  him  at  all.  But  once  two  people 
feel  they  have  common  interests,  there  is  a  basis  for 

18 


HIS  POINTS  OF  CONTACT  19 

further  transactions.  Without  the  sense  of  contact  es- 
tablished, two  minds  may  pass  as  ships  in  the  night 
without  speaking.  One  of  the  commonest  ways  of  get- 
ting together  mentally  is  by  a  story,  incident,  or  bit  of 
humor.  One  of  the  best  ways  is  to  play  together.  What 
other  ways  can  you  think  of? 

Now,  did  the  Master  Teacher  also  establish  points  of 
contact?  Read  the  following  passage  carefully  and  note 
the  answer. 

Next  day  again  John  was  standing  with  two  of  his  dis- 
ciples; he  gazed  at  Jesus  as  he  walked  about,  and  said. 
"Look,  there  is  the  lamb  of  God !"  The  two  disciples  heard 
what  he  said  and  went  after  Jesus.  Now  Jesus  turned, 
and  when  he  observed  them  coming  after  him,  he  asked 
them,  "What  do  you  want?"  They  replied,  "Rabbi" 
(which  may  be  translated,  *teacher*),  "where  are  you 
staying?"  He  said  to  them,  "Come  and  see."  So  they 
went  and  saw  where  he  stayed,  and  stayed  with  him  the 
rest  of  that  day — it  was  then  about  four  in  the  afternoon. 
One  of  the  two  men  who  heard  what  John  said  and  went 
after  Jesus  was  Andrew,  the  brother  of  Peter.  In  the 
morning  he  met  his  brother  Simon  and  told  him,  "We 
have  found  the  messiah"  (which  may  be  translated, 
*Christ').  He  took  him  to  Jesus;  Jesus  gazed  at  him  and 
said,  "You  are  Simon,  the  son  of  John?  Your  name  is 
to  be  Cephas"  (meaning  Teter'  or  *rock'). 

Next  day  Jesus  determined  to  leave  for  Galilee;  there 
he  met  Philip  and  told  him,  "Follow  me."  Now  Philip 
belonged  to  Bethsaida,  the  same  town  as  Andrew  and 
Peter;  he  met  Nathanael  and  told  him,  "We  have  found 
him  whom  Moses  wrote  about  in  the  Law,  and  also  the 
prophets — ^it  is  Jesus,  the  son  of  Joseph,  who  comes  from 
Nazaret."  "Nazaret!"  said  Nathanael,  "can  anything 
good  come  out  of  Nazaret?"  "Come  and  see,"  said 
Philip.     Jesus  saw  Nathanael  approaching  and  said  of 


80  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

him,  "Here  is  a  genuine  Israelite!  There  is  no  guile  in 
him."  Nathanael  said  to  him,  "How  do  you  know  me?" 
Jesus  answered,  "When  you  were  under  that  fig  tree, 
before  ever  PhiKp  called  you,  I  saw  you."  "Rabbi," 
iaid  Nathanael,  "you  are  the  Son  of  God,  you  are  the 
king  of  Israel!"  Jesus  answered,  "You  believe  because 
I  told  you  I  had  seen  you  under  that  fig  tree?  You  shall 
see  more  than  that."  He  said  to  him,  "Truly,  truly  I  tell 
you  all,  you  shall  see  heaven  open  wide  and  God's  angels 
ascending  and  descending  upon  the  Son  of  man." — John 
1:  35-51  (Moffatt's  translation). 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  did  Jesus  establish  contact  with 
the  two  disciples  of  the  Baptist  (Andrew  and  John),  and 
Peter,  and  Philip,  and  Nathanael? 

How  then  did  he  do  it?  Read  the  passage  again  care- 
fully and  make  a  list  of  your  answers. 

Now  compare  your  list  with  the  one  following: 

1.  Jesus  walked  where  his  presence  could  be  noted  by 
the  Baptist. 

2.  He  used  his  eyes.  He  "observed"  Andrew  and 
John  coming  after  him,  he  "gazed"  at  Simon,  he  "saw" 
Nathanael  approaching,  and  had  previously  "seen"  him 
under  that  fig  tree  in  meditation,  like  Buddha  under  the 
Bo  tree. 

3.  He  opened  up  conversation,  with  the  two,  with 
Simon,  with  Philip,  with  Nathanael. 

4.  He  asked  questions.  "What  do  you  want?"  "You 
are  Simon,  the  son  of  John?"  "You  believe  because  I 
told  you  I  had  seen  you  under  that  fig  tree?" 

5.  He  invited  companionship.  "Come  and  see."  They 
stayed  with  him  the  rest  of  that  day.    "Follow  me." 

6.  He  utiUzed  the  power  of  the  name.    We  all  like  to 


HIS  POINTS  OF  CONTACT  «1 

be  recognized,  and  called  by  name.  Further,  in  handling 
the  name,  he  took  a  personal  liberty  in  an  acceptable  way 
with  a  sense  of  humor.  "You  are  Simon,  the  son  of  John? 
Your  name  is  to  be  Cephas." 

7.  He  understood  character,  and  showed  that  he  did. 
"Here  is  a  genuine  Israelite!  There  is  no  guile  in  him." 
That  astonished  the  doubting  Nathanael.  The  open 
compliment  was  not  lost  on  him.  His  pride  was  perhaps 
tickled  as  he  recognized  himself  under  the  fine  tribute. 
He  began  to  capitulate.  Somewhat  bluntly,  without  ad- 
dress, he  asked:  "How  do  you  know  me?"  The  answer, 
showing  that  Jesus  had  noted  him  under  that  fig  tree  in 
pious  meditation,  appreciating  Nathanael  at  his  strongest 
points,  led  to  immediate  and  unconditional  surrender: 
"Rabbi,  you  are  the  Son  of  God,  you  are  the  king  of 
Israel." 

It  is  small  wonder  that  a  teacher  who  could  establish 
such  contacts  had  loyal  followers.  Even  so,  it  is  possible 
Peter,  Andrew,  and  John  were  called  again,  or  even  a 
third  time.  (See  Mark  1:16-20,  and  Luke  5:1-11.) 
Study  these  passages.  Compare  the  points  of  contact. 
How  many  different  calls  to  discipleship  did  Peter,  say, 
receive? 

How  did  Jesus  establish  a  point  of  contact  with  the 
woman  of  Samaria?  See  John  4: 1-42,  especially  verse  8. 
It  was  a  natural  request  for  a  favor.  It  was  so  simple. 
Yet  it  surmounted  two  high  walls  of  separation,  that 
he  was  Jew  and  that  she  was  scarlet. 

Nicodemus  seems  to  have  felt  under  the  necessity  of 
estabhshing  a  point  of  contact  with  Jesus.  How  does 
he  do  it?    See  John  3: 2.    Did  Jesus  require  such  a  mode 


22  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

of  approach?  Do  you  think  Jesus  interrupted  his  speech? 
Evidently  at  some  previous  time  the  mind  of  Nicodemus 
had  opened  to  Jesus.  How  do  you  imagine  it  may  have 
come  about? 

How  did  the  Pharisees  and  Herodians  seek  a  point  of 
contact  with  Jesus?    (Matt.  22: 16.) 

The  rejection  of  Jesus  in  his  home  town,  "where  he  had 
been  brought  up,"  must  have  been  a  sorrowful  disap- 
pointment to  him.  Was  his  point  of  contact  successfully 
established?  What  was  it?  Read  very  carefully  Luke 
4: 16-30.  What  caused  them  to  reject  him  after  speaking 
well  of  him  and  marveling  at  the  gracious  wordjs  that 
came  from  his  lips?  The  trouble  here  seems  not  to  have 
been  with  the  point  of  contact,  which  was  the  prophecy 
of  Isaiah  and  its  fulfilment. 

How  did  Jesus  establish  contact  with  the  thirty-eight- 
year  invalid  at  the  pool  of  Bethesda?  See  John  5. 
"Wouldest  thou  be  made  whole?"  is  the  question  ap- 
proach on  the  matter  of  keenest  concern  to  the  man. 
Find  the  question  Jesus  addressed  to  the  blind  men  at 
Jericho. 

It  is  clear  that  when  multitudes  followed  him  it  was 
because  effective  points  of  contact  had  already  been 
established.  Such  was  the  case  with  the  crowds  to  whom 
the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  or  the  Teaching  on  the  Hill, 
as  it  might  be  called,  was  given.  The  two  main  general 
methods  by  which  he  himself  had  established  such  con- 
tacts are  suggested  in  Luke  6: 17.  What  are  these?  But 
in  the  gathering  of  a  crowd  there  is  another  influence 
at  work.  What  is  it?  Find  it  in  Matt.  4:  24.  Putting 
these  three  things  together,  we  see  the  crowds  assembled 


HIS  POINTS  OF  CONTACT  23 

because  of  what  Jesus  had  said  and  done  and  because  of 
social  suggestion — the  spreading  of  fame. 

Both  Matthew  and  Luke  agree  that  Jesus  began  the 
teaching  on  the  hill  with  the  beatitudes,  or  characteris- 
tics of  the  blessed  Hfe.  How  did  he  connect  up  in  this 
way  with  something  astir  in  his  hearers*  own  minds? 

On  another  occasion,  when  teaching  a  multitude  as  it 
stood  on  the  beach  and  he  sat  in  a  boat  on  the  lake,  he 
utilized  the  parable  as  the  opening  point  of  contact,  be- 
ginning with  that  of  the  Sower.  How  would  the  parable 
appeal  to  something  already  in  the  minds  of  his  hearers? 
Would  they  be  more  interested  in  the  blessed  life  or  in  a 
story?  See  Matt.  13.  Which  appeals  to  the  higher  in- 
telligence? Why  did  Jesus  begin  his  teaching  of  multi- 
tudes with  simple  statements  and  then  pass  later  to 
figurative  language?  This  last  question  may  have  to 
wait  till  we  make  a  special  study  of  the  parables.  How 
did  multitudes  of  people  afiFect  Jesus?  See  Matt.  9:  36 
and  15:  32. 

Jesus  would  eat  and  drink  with  publicans  and  sinners. 
His  disciples  did  the  same.  This  scandalized  the  Phari- 
sees and  their  scribes.  Why  did  Jesus  do  it?  See  Matt. 
9: 10-13.  What  effect  did  such  social  freedom  have  on 
the  Levis  and  the  Magdalens?  Would  it  be  going  too  far 
to  say  Jesus  was,  as  we  say,  "a  good  mixer"?  Does  being 
a  good  mixer  necessitate  doing  wrong  things?  Jesus  re- 
marked that  it  was  said  of  him,  "Behold,  a  gluttonous 
man  and  a  wine-bibber."  Why  is  eating  and  drinking 
with  a  person  such  an  intimate  form  of  contact? 

How  did  Jesus  establish  contact  with  Zaccheus?  Read 
Luke  19: 1-10  with  this  question  in  mind.    How  did  Jesus 


24  JESUS-~THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

meet  Zaccheus  more  than  half  way?  Would  you  say  that 
the  habitual  attitude  of  Jesus  toward  people  was  ex-, 
elusive  or  democratic?  Back  of  every  contact  established 
seems  to  have  been  the  helpful  disposition  of  Jesus, 
coupled  with  the  desire  to  complete  the  fragmentary 
lives  of  people.  How  does  the  incident  of  Zaccheus  show 
the  use  Jesus  made  of  the  occasion  as  it  arose?  This  is 
so  important  a  matter  that  we  must  give  especial  atten- 
tion to  it  later. 

In  the  triumphal  entry,  by  riding  upon  a  colt,  the  foal 
of  an  ass,  with  what  possible  content  in  the  minds  of  the 
people  was  Jesus  seeking  connection?  Read  Matt.  21: 
1-11;  Mark  11:1-11;  Luke  19:29-44;  John  12:12-19. 
Did  he  succeed?    Here  an  act  is  used  to  make  an  appeal. 

After  the  denial  by  Peter,  how  did  Jesus  reestablish 
contact  with  him?  See  Luke  22:  61.  You  notice  the 
repeated  references  to  the  use  of  his  eyes  by  Jesus.  What 
others  can  you  recall?  The  resurrection  angel  sent  a 
special  message  to  Peter.  Mark  16:  7.  How  did  Jesus 
timself  reopen  contact  with  Peter?    See  John  21: 15. 

It  would  be  worth  while  to  follow  this  study  with  a 
careful  account  of  the  spirit  contacts  Jesus  made  after  the 
resurrection  with  Mary  Magdalene  in  the  garden,  with 
Cleopas  and  John  on  the  way  to  Emmaus,  with  the  other 
disciples,  and  with  Thomas. 

Sum  up  now  the  main  modes  of  contact  made  by  Jesus. 
How  many  have  you?  After  all,  just  which  ones  are  not 
open  to  us?     All  we  require  is  the  will  and  the  skill. 

When  we  reach  "Apperception"  we  shall  find  it  a  way 
of  keeping  up  the  mental  contact  already  made.  See 
Patterson  Du  Bois,  "The  Point  of  Contact  in  Teaching." 


CHAPTER  V 
mS  AIMS 

A  real  teacher  must  have  both  strategy  and  tactics, 
that  is,  he  must  have  both  objectives  and  means  for 
attaining  them.  Without  strategy,  tactics  have  no  goal; 
without  tactics,  strategy  has  no  means  of  attainment. 
What  were  the  objectives  of  the  Great  Teacher.'' 
First,  make  a  Hst  of  these  for  yourself,  and  then  com- 
pare it  with  the  one  given  below. 

1.  To  do  his  Father's  will  and  work.  "My  meat  is  to 
do  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me  and  to  accomplish  his 
work"  (John  4:34). 

2.  To  be  accepted  as  the  Messiah,  "I  that  speak  unto 
thee  am  he."    "Whom  say  ye  that  I  am?" 

3.  To  win  learners  and  to  train  them  as  witnesses  of 
his.  So  he  called  many,  and  chose  a  few  to  be  apostles, 
and  sent  them  forth  two  by  two,  and  said  to  them:  "Ye 
are  my  witnesses." 

4.  To  substitute  vital  for  formal  religion.  This  covers 
a  great  deal,  including  the  prayer  of  the  publican,  the 
benevolence  of  the  poor  widow,  fasting  in  secret,  the 
elimination  of  the  motives  of  murder  and  lust  and  hatred, 
perhaps  even  the  destruction  of  the  sacrificial  system  in 
the  cleansing  of  the  temple.  "I  desire  mercy  and  not 
sacrifice."    "Pray  to  thy  Father  in  secret." 

5.  To  fulfil  the  law  in  the  new  universal  kingdom  of 
social  righteousness.    "Think  not  that  I  am  come  to  de- 

25 


m  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

stroy  the  law  or  the  prophets.  I  am  not  come  to  destroy 
but  to  fulfil."  Most  of  the  parables  were  designed  to  make 
plain  to  discerning  minds  the  nature  of  the  Kingdom. 

6.  To  show  by  example  and  to  teach  by  precept  the 
way  of  life.  "I  am  come  that  they  might  have  life,  and 
that  they  might  have  it  more  abundantly."  Through 
seeking  and  saving  the  lost,  he  would  prevent  the  ulti- 
mate miscarriage  of  life.  He  came  to  bear  witness  to  the 
truth  that  by  losing  life  we  gain  it.  He  gave  his  life  as  a 
ransom  for  many. 

7.  To  quicken  the  faith  and  hope  of  men.  He  added  to 
John  the  Baptist's  gospel  of  repentance  the  injunction: 
"Believe  the  gospel,"  that  is,  accept  as  true  the  good  news 
of  God*s  love  and  act  accordingly.  His  concern  was  that 
at  his  coming  again  he  should  find  faith  on  the  earth. 

8.  To  break  the  bonjds  of  race  prejudice.  He  talked 
with  a  Samaritan  woman  at  high  noon.  He  made  a  Sa- 
maritan the  model  neighbor  of  one  of  his  stories.  He 
healed  the  daughter  of  a  Syrophoenician  woman  and  the 
servant  of  a  Roman  centurion.  He  received  Greeks  and 
spoke  to  them  of  life  through  death,  as  Plato  had  done 
over  three  hundred  years  before.  He  talked  of  his  "other 
sheep,"  of  the  leavening  of  "the  whole,"  of  the  salt  of 
"the  earth,"  of  the  light  of  the  "world." 

9.  To  destroy  the  works  of  darkness.  Thus  by  the 
finger  of  God  he  cast  out  demons,  healed  diseases,  and 
relieved  affliction  of  every  kind,  and  gave  his  disciples 
power  and  authority  over  the  demons. 

How  would  you  extend  this  list? 

Note  we  have  here  read  his  aims  in  terms  of  his  ac- 
complishments.   Is  this  justifiable?    If  so,  why?    If  not. 


HIS  AIMS  27 

what  were  his  aims  in  distinction  from  his  accomplish- 
ments? 

Which  of  these  aims  are  practicable  for  his  followers 
today? 

In  his  aims  as  a  teacher  did  Jesus  place  primary  em- 
phasis on  the  acting  or  the  thinking  of  his  pupils? 

The  statement  of  aims  given  above  is  drawn  from  his 
own  teachings.  Suppose  we  approach  the  matter  from 
another  angle.  If  you  are  somewhat  familiar  with  mod- 
ern educational  thought,  make  a  list  of  the  aims  of  edu- 
cation as  a  present-day  thinker  might  formulate  them. 
Then  consider  the  extent  to  which  these  aims  appear  in 
the  deeds  and  words  of  Jesus.  Such  a  mode  of  procedure 
would  apply  a  modern  standard,  the  highest  we  have,  to 
his  work  done  nearly  twenty  centuries  ago. 

The  aims  of  education: 

1.  To  develop  a  sound  body. 

2.  To  form  a  good  character. 

3.  To  refine  feeling. 

4.  To  inform  and  equip  the  intellect. 

5.  To  make  a  good  citizen. 

6.  To  cultivate  productive  skill. 

7.  To  relate  life  to  its  Source  and  Goal. 

It  is  true  that  such  a  statement  as  this  is  synthetic.  It 
probably  would  not  be  found  in  its  entirety  in  the  usual 
books  today  on  educational  theory.  Points  three  and 
seven  are  very  commonly  omitted.  But  it  is  a  fair  com- 
posite pictiu*e  of  what  educators  hold  today  concerning 
the  aims  of  education. 

Now  ask  yourself  the  question:  To  what  extent  do 
these  aims  appear  in  the  work  of  Jesus  as  teacher? 


28  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

1.  He  healed  the  bodies  of  men  and  made  them  whole. 

2.  He  Uved  and  taught  the  highest  standards  of  moral 
character. 

3.  He  pointed  out  the  beauties  of  nature. 

4.  He  taught  ethical  and  spiritual  truths  and  trained 
the  intelligence  of  his  disciples. 

5.  He  was  a  good  citizen  and  taught  obedience  to  civil 
authority. 

6.  He  was  a  carpenter  and  taught  the  economic  virtues. 

7.  He  was  the  Son  and  spiritualized  life. 

We  note  then  that  Jesus  practiced  what  modern  edu- 
cators preach,  that  complete  education  is  sevenfold — 
namely,  physical,  moral,  esthetic,  intellectual,  social,  vo- 
cational, and  spiritual.  In  both  practice  and  theory  the 
Master  Teacher  long  ago  set  up  the  standards  which  are 
also  those  of  our  modern  pedagogy. 

What  comments  have  you  to  make  upon  this  showing? 

G.  Stanley  Hall  thinks  that  the  great  objective  of 
Jesus  was  to  bring  men  to  attain,  or  at  least  to  approxi- 
mate, his  own  state  of  mind;  that  it  was  this  objective 
which  led  him  to  become  a  teacher;  that  the  difficulty  of 
his  task  determined  his  methods  of  training  a  few,  of 
reticence,  and  of  healing.  So  men  would  be  brought  to 
recognize  him  for  what  he  was  without  his  open  avowal 
of  divine  sonship,  which  some  would  regard  as  blas- 
phemous and  others  as  insane  talk.  And  all  this  he  was 
thinking  through  at  the  time  of  the  Temptation. 

"But  now  his  thought  must  turn  to  the  world  of  other 
men.  What  could  be  done  with  this  great  new  insight  so 
hard  to  grasp,  so  impossible  to  teach  directly?  .  .  .  Thus 
he  must  probably  always  teach  with  reservations  and  with 


HIS  AIMS  29 

more  or  less  veiled  reticence,  for  to  reveal  all  he  had  seen 
would  spoil  all.  He  must  follow  a  program  or  curriculum, 
and  must  be  a  great  teacher,  for  if  others  ever  were  to 
attain  his  state  of  mind  or  to  get  near  it,  and  profit  in 
proportion,  it  would  never  be  by  his  method,  viz.,  that 
of  solitude,  meditation,  and  prayer,  but  by  objective 
demonstration.  ...  A  man  conscious  of  his  own  essen- 
tial divinity  must  give  proof  in  object  lesson  form  of  his 
superiority  over  others  whose  souls  had  not  realized  their 
own  consubstantiality  with  God."^ 

What  do  you  think  of  Hall's  views  .'^ 

Would  you  say  that  one  of  the  aims  of  Jesus  was  to 
establish  rehgion  as  an  ecclesiastical  institution  on  the 
earth? 

Did  Jesus  intend  to  reform  Judaism  or  to  found  Chris- 
tianity? 

Review  his  aims  and  ask  in  which  he  succeeded  best. 

To  what  extent  should  his  aims  be  ours? 

1 G.  St*nley  Hall.  "JesuB,  the  Christ,  in  th»  Light  of  Psychology,"  Vol.  I,  p.  304. 


CHAPTER  VI 
HIS  USE  OF  PROBLEMS 

What  is  a  problem?    Your  answer? 

When  we  stand  at  a  fork  in  the  road,  we  face  a  problem; 
that  is,  in  case  we  are  going  somewhere  and  the  road  is 
new  to  us.  In  such  a  case  our  intellectual  processes  of 
reflection  and  deliberation  are  aroused,  leading  to  a 
solution  of  the  problem,  upon  the  basis  of  which  we  may 
proceed  on  our  journey. 

The  Greek  original  of  the  term  suggests  that  a  problem 
is  something  cast  before  the  mind.  Being  there,  it  re- 
quires solution,  if  a  solution  can  be  had.  This  term  is 
worth  studying  in  the  dictionary. 

How  many  kinds  of  problems  are  there? 

Some  problems  grow  immediately  out  of  our  experience 
and  their  solutions  affect  daily  conduct.  These  problems 
are  'practical  in  character.  Other  problems  are  proposed 
by  the  intellect  to  itself,  their  solutions  are  diflScult  or 
impossible  to  reach,  and,  if  reached,  they  affect  life  little 
or  none.    These  problems  are  theoretical. 

Will  this  distinction  between  practical  and  theoretical 
problems  hold?  Only  in  a  crude  way.  A  man,  let  us  say, 
does  something  wrong,  and  suffers  remorse.  He  may 
wonder  whether  he  could  have  done  differently.  He 
faces  the  problem  of  free  will  and  determination.  These 
are  the  forks  in  his  road.  Is  his  problem  practical  or  theo- 
retical? We  may  say  practical  in  the  sense  that  it  grows 
out  of  his  experience  and  his  answer  affects  his  conduct. 

30 


HIS  USE  OF  PROBLEMS  81 

We  may  say  theoretical  in  the  sense  that  he  is  not  sure  of 
his  answer,  which  he  accepts,  not  proves. 

Can  you  think  of  other  problems  difficult  of  classifica- 
tion? 

How  would  you  classify  the  problem  of  life  after  death? 
of  the  existence  of  God?  of  spirit  communication?  of 
reducing  the  high  cost  of  living?  of  increasing  the  hire  of 
teachers  and  preachers?  of  the  habitation  of  Mars?  of 
the  Einstein  theory  of  light?  of  leaky  radiators?  of  the 
ouija  board? 

In  sum,  we  may  say,  there  are  problems  whose  solu- 
tions affect  the  conduct  of  life,  these  are  practical;  there 
are  problems  whose  solutions  do  not  affect  the  conduct 
of  life,  these  are  theoretical;  and  there  are  problems,  like 
free  will,  whose  solutions  are  theoretical  but  whose  ap- 
plications are  practical. 

Can  you  see  any  relationship  between  the  third  group 
of  problems  and  faith?  We  might  say  that  faith  is  acting 
as  though  a  theory  were  true. 

It  is  also  to  be  observed  that  the  solution  of  a  theoretical 
problem  may  in  unexpected  ways  become  practical,  as 
when  wireless  telegraphy  helps  save  life  at  sea.  This  is  one 
justification  for  laboratories  of  pure  research.  Another, 
perhaps,  is  that  knowledge  is  worth  having  for  its  own 
sake,  even  if  no  use  can  ever  be  made  of  it.    Is  this  true? 

So,  the  facing  of  a  problem  is  the  beginning  of  real 
thinking.  Without  a  felt  difficulty,  thinking  is  only 
simulated.  To  think  is  to  think  about.  And  the  thing 
really  thought  about  is  the  problem.  Dewey  says^:  "The 
need  of  clearing  up  confusion,  of  straightening  out  an 

^  Art.  "Problem,"  in  Monro«'s  "Encyclopedia  of  Education." 


8«  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

ambiguity,  of  overcoming  an  obstacle,  of  covering  the 
gap  between  things  as  they  are  and  as  they  may  be  when 
transformed,  is,  in  germ,  a  problem." 

May  a  problem  be  present  in  a  situation  without  being 
recognized? 

Is  it  a  problem  in  teaching  to  find  the  problem? 

Is  it  worth  while  to  find  the  problem  first? 

Is  what  the  teacher  selects  as  the  problem  necessarily 
the  same  as  the  pupil's  problem? 

May  the  pupil  have  a  problem  of  which  he  Is  not  aware? 

Does  the  setting  of  a  task  necessarily  constitute  a  prob- 
lem? What  does?  Dewey  says:  "As  a  matter  of  fact, 
the  conditions  in  experience,  the  content,  determine 
whether  a  matter  is  or  is  not  a  problem  and  what  sort  of 
a  problem  it  is." 

If  facing  a  felt  problem  is  the  beginning  of  real  think- 
ing, it  is  also  the  basis  of  real  teaching.  Such  teaching  is 
not  only  interesting,  it  is  also  effective  in  changing  con- 
duct, and  this  is  what  we  want  in  teaching  morality  and 
religion,  which,  if  they  do  not  affect  life,  are  nothing. 

Did  Jesus  use  the  problem  method?  Graves^  devotes 
two  pages  to  "His  Use  of  the  Problem  with  the  Disciples," 
and  says:  "Like  all  great  teachers,  Jesus  felt  that  real 
thinking  begins  with  a  problem." 

Can  you  show  the  truth  of  this  statement? 

Can  you  distinguish  between  those  problems  sensed  as 
such  by  his  pupils  and  critics  and  those  he  brought  to 
their  attention?  In  the  latter  case  they  may  not  have 
been  conscious  of  their  problem  until  he  spoke  of  it. 
In  which  group  is  Peter's  question:  "What  shall  we  have?" 

«  "What  Did  Jmus  ToMh?"  p.  il,  N.  Y.,  1910. 


HIS  USE  OF  PROBLEMS  «S 

In  which  group  is  the  teaching  of  Jesus:  "How  hardly 
shall  they  that  have  riches  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven"? 
Were  the  difficulties  raised  by  his  critics  real  problems? 

Shall  we  say  that  every  person  requesting  a  blessing 
from  Jesus  brought  a  problem  with  him?  Have  you  a 
case  in  mind  in  which  Jesus  sensed  a  deeper  problem  that 
was  brought?    (See  Mark  2: 1-1£.) 

Have  you  a  case  in  mind  in  which  Jesus  declined  to 
deal  with  the  problem  brought?  In  this  connection  recall 
the  request:  "Speak  to  my  brother  that  he  divide  the 
inheritance  with  me."  Recall  also  how  he  reacted  to 
their  desire  to  make  him  king. 

To  realize  whether  Jesus  used  the  problem  method  or 
not,  make  a  list  of  persons  he  taught  with  their  problems. 
To  shorten  it,  you  might  omit  the  cases  of  healing  on 
request,  and  you  might  utilize  Mark's  gospel,  as  the 
oldest  and  the  shortest. 

After  making  your  list,  compare  it  with  the  following 
one: 

Persons  Their  Problems 

The  scribes,  Mark  2:  7.  Who  can  forgive  sins? 

Scribes      and      Pharisees,      The    association    of   Jesus 

Mark  2: 16.  with  publicans  and  sin- 

ners. 
"They,"  Mark  2: 18.  Why  the  disciples  did  not 

fast. 
The  Pharisees,  Mark  2:  24.      Sabbath  observance. 
The  scribes,  Mark  3 :  22.  How  Jesus  cast  out  demons 

(note  their  solution). 
His  fellow-townsmen,  Mark      The  sources  of  Jesus'  power. 

6:2,3. 


84 


JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 


Persons 
The  scribes  and  Pharisees, 

Mark  7:  5. 
The  Pharisees,  Mark  8: 11. 
Peter,    James,    and   John, 

Mark  9: 11. 
The  disciples,  Mark  9:  34. 
John  and  others,  Mark  9: 

38. 
The  Pharisees,  Mark  10:  2. 
The  rich  young  ruler,  Mark 

10: 17. 
James  and  John,  Mark  10: 

37. 
Chief  priests,  scribes,  and 

elders,  Mark  11:  28. 
Pharisees   and   Herodians, 

Mark  12: 14. 
Sadducees,  Mark  12: 23. 
Ascribe,  Mark  12:  29. 
Peter,    James,    John,    and 

Andrew,  Mark  13:  4. 
Some   at   Simon's   dinner, 

Mark  14:4. 
The  high  priest,  Mark  14: 

61. 


Their  Problems 
Why  the  disciples  did  not 

observe  the  traditions. 
They  wanted  a  sign. 
The  coming  of  Elijah. 

"Who  is  the  greatest?" 
Tolerance  of  other  workers. 

Divorce. 

Inheriting  eternal  life. 

Sitting  on  his  right  and  left 

hand. 
The  authority  of  Jesus, 

The  tribute  to  Csesar. 

The  resurrection. 

The  first  commandment. 

"When  shall  these  things 

her 
The  waste  of  ointment. 

Whether  Jesus  claimed  to 
be  the  Christ. 


Doubtless,  other  incidents  in  Mark's  gospel  that  con- 
tain certain  problems  could  be  cited. 

Note  that  the  problems  faced  here  by  Jesus  were  mostly 
not  of  his  own  choosing,  but  were  brought  to  him,  sensed 


HIS  USE  OF  PROBLEMS  S5 

as  primary  by  those  who  brought  them.  Of  three,  how- 
ever, he  chose  to  make  an  issue,  namely,  the  charge  that 
he  had  Beelzebub,  the  indignation  at  the  waste  of  the 
ointment,  and  the  conversation  of  the  disciples  concern- 
ing the  greatest. 

This  study  might  be  carried  through  the  other  gospels. 
For  example,  how  would  you  formulate  the  problem  in 
the  mind  of  Nicodemus  as  he  came  to  Jesus  by  night? 
What  were  the  problems  of  the  Woman  of  Samaria? 

Run  again  through  the  list  given  above  and  note  what 
solution  Jesus  gave  to  each  problem. 

Run  through  it  still  again  and  note  the  effects  on 
conduct  of  the  solution  given  in  each  case  when  re- 
corded. 

The  teaching  of  Jesus  shows:  problem — solution — ac- 
tion. Shall  we  regard  these  three  as  natural  elements  of 
every  teaching  act? 

From  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  make  a  list  of  prob- 
lems upon  which  Jesus  chose  to  speak,  sensing  them 
as  the  problems  of  the  multitudes.  To  what  extent,  do 
you  suppose,  were  these  problems  felt  as  such  by  the 
crowds  themselves? 

How  would  you  classify  the  problems  upon  which  Jesus 
spoke,  as  practical  or  theoretical?  Which,  if  any,  are 
theoretical? 

Did  Jesus  sense  the  real  needs  of  men  better  than  they 
did  themselves? 

If  Jesus  had  been  a  teacher  of  science  and  philosophy, 
would  he  have  discussed  theoretical  problems  more? 

What  may  we  as  teachers  of  morality  and  religion  learn 
from  Jesus'  use  of  the  problem  method? 


S6  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

To  what  extent  does  the  teaching  we  know  conform  to 
this  method? 

What  would  happen  if  teachers  and  preachers  began 
with  problems? 

Reshape  next  Simday's  Bible  school  lesson  about  a 
problem. 

There  is  another  mode  of  approach  to  this  matter.  The 
term  problem  suggests  particularly  something  intellectual, 
though,  of  course,  problems  may  be  emotional  and  moral 
as  well  as  intellectual.  The  word  need  suggests  particu- 
larly what  is  felt  as  a  need. 

Make  a  list  of  as  many  of  the  needs  of  people  as  you 
can  which  Jesus  met. 

Compare  your  list  with  the  following: 

The  healing  of  the  body. 

The  forgiveness  of  sin. 

The  release  from  fear. 

The  satisfaction  of  the  desire  to  know. 

The  redirection  of  motive. 

Relief  from  Sabbatarianism. 

Guidance  in  how  to  pray. 

The  right  valuation  of  sacrifice  and  mercy. 

Social  recognition. 

A  universal  rule  of  conduct. 

A  true  estimate  of  wealth. 

The  dignity  of  humble  service. 

Right  regard  for  children. 

Ability  to  be  cheerful  in  a  world  of  tribulation. 

Knowledge  of  the  greatest  commandment. 

The  right  attitude  toward  the  letter  of  Scripture. 

The  increase  of  faith. 


HIS  USE  OF  PROBLEMS  37 

The  spirit  of  truth. 

The  resolution  of  doubt. 

The  showing  forth  of  the  Father. 

The  condemnation  of  hypocrisy  in  religion. 

Ministry  to  cities  and  multitudes. 

The  restoration  of  religious  sanity  to  diseased  minds. 

The  satisfaction  of  hunger. 

The  welcome  of  sinners. 

Is  there  any  limit  to  a  list  of  the  needs  of  men  met  by 
Jesus?  (Once  a  group  provided  me  with  a  list  of  ninety- 
four  such  different  needs.) 

Could  you  illustrate  from  the  gospels  each  of  these 
needs? 

Can  you  think  of  any  moral  or  religious  need  of  man 
not  met  by  Jesus? 

Are  there  needs  of  men  in  science,  philosophy,  art, 
production,  manufacture,  commerce,  transportation,  and 
politics,  not  met  by  Jesus?  In  what  sense?  Would  an 
affirmative  answer  constitute  an  unworthy  limitation  on 
the  influence  of  Jesus? 

To  be  concrete,  may  a  business  man  learn  all  he  needs 
to  know  about  the  psychology  of  advertising  from  the 
gospels? 

Perhaps  we  must  distinguish  between  the  inspiration 
to  all  that  is  good  and  needful,  which  we  do  find  in  Jesus, 
and  the  attainment  of  all  such  useful  information,  which, 
of  course,  we  do  not  find  in  his  recorded  words.  A  Chris- 
tian may  study  Greek  tragedy,  but  his  Christianity  does 
not  tell  him  what  to  think  of  Greek  tragedy  as  a  form  of 
art. 

We  conclude,  then,  that  Jesus  met  the  moral  and  re- 


88  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

ligious  needs  of  men,  and  inspired  them  to  find  satisfac- 
tion of  all  their  needs  in  the  abundant  life. 

What  difference  would  it  make  in  our  work  if  we  met 
men  on  the  ground  of  their  problems  and  needs? 


CHAPTER  Vn 
HIS  CONVERSATIONS 

Washington  Gladden  has  an  essay  entitled  "Qualities 
of  Good  Conversation."  Let  me  provide  you  with  a 
brief  summary  of  it,  in  the  light  of  which  we  can  study 
the  conversations  of  Jesus. 

Qualities  of  Good  Conversation 

"In  politics,  in  religion,  in  the  arts  of  life,  opinions  are 
oftener  changed  by  familiar  talk  than  by  formal  speeches. 
.  .  .  But  conversation  is  not  merely  a  useful  art,  it  is  a 
fine  art. 

"There  are  just  two  indispensable  qualifications  of  a 
good  conversationalist.  The  first  is  a  good  mind,  the 
second  is  a  good  heart.  The  good  heart  is  by  far  the 
more  important  and  the  one  more  likely  to  be  disregarded. 

"The  good  mind  implies:  (1)  Natural  ability;  (2)  in- 
telligence; (3)  discipline. 

"The  good  heart  implies:  (1)  Good  humor;  (2)  chari- 
tableness; (3)  candor;  (4)  sympathy;  (5)  earnestness; 
(6)  sincerity;  (7)  modesty. 

"The  good  conversationalist  is  one  who  can  not  only 
talk  well,  but  also  listen  well. 

"I  remember  now  the  words  of  One  whose  conversa- 
tions (for  he  never  made  speeches)  have  been  the  most 
precious  legacy  of  the  world  for  many  centuries:  *How 
can  ye,  being  evil,  speak  good  things?  for  out  of  the 
abundance  of  the  heart  the  mouth  speaketh.     A  good 

39 


40  JESUS-THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

man  out  of  the  good  treasure  of  the  heart  bringeth  forth 
good  things:  and  an  evil  man  out  of  the  evil  treasure 
bringeth  forth  evil  things.*  Here  we  come  to  the  root  of 
the  matter.    If  you  would  talk  well  you  must  live  well." 

Let  us  now  apply  the  findings  of  Dr.  Gladden  to  the 
conversations  of  Jesus. 

Do  they  reveal  the  good  mind?  and  the  good  heart? 
Is  there  natural  ability?  intelligence?  discipline  of  mind? 
good  humor?  charitableness?  candor?  sympathy?  ear- 
nestness?  sincerity?  modesty? 

How  would  you  illustrate  each  of  these  characteristics 
by  the  conversations  of  Jesus? 

How  is  the  fact  that  he  finally  silenced  his  intellectual 
critics  related  to  the  quality  of  his  mind? 

How  is  the  fact  that  Mary  sat  with  joy  at  his  feet 
related  to  the  quality  of  both  mind  and  heart? 

How  is  the  fact  that  he  was  untrained  in  the  rabbinical 
schools  of  the  time,  yet  was  able  to  engage  successfully  in 
dialectic  with  their  graduates,  related  to  his  natural 
ability? 

How  does  the  conversation  concerning  the  fall  of 
Siloam's  tower  reveal  intelligence? 

How  does  the  conversation  concerning  the  baptism  of 
John  reveal  a  well-disciplined  mind? 

How  does  the  conversation  concerning  Herod's  designs 
on  his  life  show  good  humor? 

What  conversation  reveals  his  charitableness?  Was  he 
uncharitable  in  his  conversation  with  the  Pharisees  con- 
cerning Corhan,  or  only  just? 

How  is  his  candor  revealed  in  his  conversation  with 
Pilate  concerning  kingship? 


HIS  CONVERSATIONS  41 

How  is  sympathetic  insight  shown  in  his  conversation 
with  Martha  concerning  domestic  duties? 

Did  he  ever  descend  from  earnestness  to  flippancy? 
How  are  Peter's  words,  "Thou  hast  the  words  of 
eternal  life,"  related  to  the  quality  of  earnestness  in 
Jesus? 

How  does  sincerity  appear  in  his  conversation  with 
the  rich  young  ruler  concerning  inheriting  eternal  life? 
Have  you  further  illustrations  of  sincerity?  How  do  you 
interpret  John  7:8? 

How  does  modesty  appear  in  the  conversations  of 
Jesus?  Is  it  in  the  reply,  "Why  callest  thou  me  good?" 
What  other  translation  of  this  passage  is  there?  Is  this 
trait  inconsistent  with  the  self-assertion  of  Jesus? 

Are  there  still  other  qualities  of  the  good  conversa- 
tionist?   How  about  fluency?  brilliancy?  wit? 

Did  Jesus  exemplify  any  of  these?  Is  there  caustic  wit 
in  his  conversation  with  the  Pharisees  concerning  casting 
out  demons:  "And  if  I  by  Beelzebub  cast  out  demons,  by 
whom  do  your  sons  cast  them  out?"    (Luke  11: 19.) 

Was  Jesus  a  good  listener?    How  could  you  show  it? 

Do  you  agree  with  the  parenthetic  remark  of  Dr.  Glad- 
den that  Jesus  "never  made  speeches"? 

Almost  any  book  of  polite  literature  dealing  with  the 
art  of  conversation  will  include  such  hints  as  these: 
Don't  use  slang;  avoid  exaggeration;  be  genial;  think 
before  you  speak;  don't  pim;  don't  argue;  exclude  reli- 
gion and  politics  as  topics;  conceal  temper;  don't  inter- 
rupt the  sj>eaker;  adapt  your  conversation  to  your  com- 
pany; don't  correct  another  in  pubUc. 

To  begin  with,  did  Jesus  frequent  "polite"  society? 


42  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Are  such  conversations  recorded?  How  do  the  con- 
versations as  recorded  differ  in  purpose  from  those  of 
polite  society? 

In  the  days  of  Socrates,  Plato,  and  Aristotle,  men 
conversed  on  all  the  deep  interests  of  life  both  in  public 
places  and  in  private  homes.  The  results  of  these  con- 
versations were  recorded  and  have  since  instructed  the 
learned  world.  How  do  the  conversations  of  Jesus  with 
his  disciples  compare  with  these? 

In  the  list  of  eleven  hints  given  above,  check  the  ones 
you  think  Jesus  exemplified.  Could  you  prove  your 
points?  Do  any  figures  of  speech  of  Jesus  involve  exag- 
geration? Did  he  ever  pun?  Did  he  argue?  Did  he  dis- 
cuss religion  and  politics?  Did  he  at  times  show  feeling 
in  conversation?  Have  you  a  clear  case  where  he  inter- 
rupted a  speaker?  Did  he  ever  correct  the  views  of 
others  in  public?  If  Jesus  had  engaged  only  in  polite 
conversations  at  such  social  functions  as  he  attended, 
should  we  ever  have  heard  of  him?  What  kind  of  a  guest 
was  he? 

Who  are  a  few  of  the  remembered  talkers  of  the  race? 
Why  are  they  remembered? 

Are  there  still  some  characteristics  of  the  conversations 
of  Jesus  not  yet  mentioned?  Reread  Mark  10,  11,  and 
12  with  this  question  in  mind. 

Shall  we  say  that  the  conversations  of  Jesus  were: 

1.  Brief? 

2.  Purposeful? 

3.  Direct,  pointed,  not  evasive? 

4.  Personal? 

5.  Making  a  difference  to  the  interlocutor? 


HIS  CONVERSATIONS  43 

6.  Instructive,  communicative? 

7.  Accompanied  by  use  ot  eyes  (Mark  10:  27)? 

8.  Responsive? 

9.  Courageous? 

10.  Rebuking? 

11.  Marvelous?     (Mark  12: 17.) 

12.  Friendly? 

13.  Appreciative?     (Mark  12:34.) 

14.  Pleasure    and    pain-giving?     (Mark    12:  37;    10 

22.) 

15.  Monologue  or  dialogue?    Give  and  take? 

16.  Quick-witted? 

17.  Uncompromising? 

18.  Dignified? 

19.  Friend  and  enemy-making?   (Mark  12: 12.) 

20.  Stimulating? 

Take  any  one  of  the  conversations  of  Jesus  and  find  as 
many  qualities  in  it  as  you  can. 

While  no  one  wants  always  to  be  teaching  people  things, 
to  what  extent  do  you  feel  we  are  really  utilizing  to  the 
full  oiu-  conversations? 

Did  Jesus  "talk  shop"? 

"When  in  Rome,  do  as  the  Romans  do."    Did  Jesus? 

Read  carefully  the  following  estimate  and  note  any 
points  of  disagreement: 

"This  sense  of  humor  made  the  common  people  hear 
him  gladly.  The  stupidity  and  faux  pas  of  the  disciples, 
who  understood  him  as  little  as  Goethe's  Wagner  under- 
stood Faust;  the  address  to  the  soul,  *Thou  hast  much 
goods  laid  up,'  which  suggests  Holbein's  *Dance  of  Death'; 
the  admonition  not  to  sit  in  the  chief  seat  at  a  feast,  or 


44  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

ask  to  dinner  only  those  who  will  ask  you  to  dine  in 
return;  these  and  the  many  pithy  epigrammatic  sayings 
that  the  world  knows  by  heart  show  that  Jesus  was  a 
great  conversationalist,  as  witty  as  he  was  wise;  that  he 
was  as  ready  with  pleasantry,  satire,  ridicule,  and  irony 
as  he  was  with  invectives."^ 


»a.  S.  HaU,  "Jesus,  the  Chriat,  in  the  light  of  PBychology,"  Vol.  II,  p.  421. 


CHAPTER  VIII 
HIS  QUESTIONS 

Somehow  at  the  beginning  of  this  inquiry  I  sense  that 
we  are  near  the  heart  of  the  teaching  methods  of  Jesus. 

Recall  now  as  many  questions  asked  by  Jesus  as  you 
can. 

What  are  some  of  them? 

The  four  gospels  record  over  one  hundred  different 
ones. 

Here  are  some  of  them: 

"How  is  it  that  ye  sought  me?" 

"Knew  ye  not  that  I  must  be  in  my  Father's  house?" 
(His  first  recorded  words.) — ^Luke  2: 49. 

"What  seek  ye?"— John  1:  38. 

"Woman,  what  have  I  to  do  with  thee?" — ^John  2: 4. 

"Art  thou  the  teacher  of  Israel,  and  understandest  not 
these  things?"— John  3: 10. 

"If  I  told  you  earthly  things  and  ye  believe  not,  how 
shall  ye  beheve  if  I  tell  you  heavenly  things?" — ^John  3: 
12. 

"Say  not  ye.  There  are  yet  four  months,  and  then 
Cometh  the  harvest"? — ^John  4:  35. 

"Why  reason  ye  in  your  hearts?  Which  is  easier  to 
say,  Thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee;  or  to  say.  Arise  and  walk?" 
—Luke  5:  22,  23. 

"Wherefore  think  ye  evil  in  your  hearts?" — Matt.  9: 4. 

"Wouldst  thou  be  made  whole?" — ^John  5:  6. 

"How  can  ye  believe,  who  receive  glory  one  of  another, 

45 


46  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

and  the  glory  that  cometh  from  the  only  God  ye  seek 
not?"— John  5:  44. 

"But  if  ye  believe  not  his  writings,  how  shall  ye  beheve 
my  words?" — John  5:  47. 

"Did  ye  never  read  what  David  did?"— Mark  2:  25,  26. 

"Or,  have  ye  not  read  in  the  law?"— Matt.  12:  5. 

"Is  it  lawful  on  the  sabbath  day  to  do  good,  or  to  do 
harm?  to  save  a  life,  or  to  kill?" — Mark  3:  4. 

"What  man  shall  there  be  of  you,  that  shall  have  one 
sheep?"  etc.— Matt.  12: 11. 

"But  if  the  salt  have  lost  its  savor,  wherewith  shall  it 
be  salted?"— Matt.  5: 13. 

"For  if  ye  love  them  that  love  you,  what  reward  have 
ye?"— Matt.  5:46,  47. 

"Is  not  the  life  more  than  the  food?" 

"Are  not  ye  of  much  more  value  than  they?" — ^Matt. 
6:25,26. 

"And  which  of  you  by  being  anxious  can  add  one 
cubit  to  his  stature?" 

"And  why  are  ye  anxious  concerning  raiment?" — Matt. 
6: 27,  28. 

"Shall  he  not  much  more  clothe  you?" — ^Matt.  6: 30. 

"And  why  beholdest  thou  the  mote  that  is  in  thy 
brother's  eye?"  etc.— Matt.  7:  3,  4. 

"Or  what  man  is  there  of  you,  who,  if  his  son  shall  ask 
him  for  a  loaf  will  give  him  a  stone?" — Matt.  7:11. 

"Do  men  gather  grapes  of  thorns?" — ^Matt.  7: 16. 

"What  went  ye  out  into  the  wilderness  to  see?" — ^Matt. 
11:7-9. 

"But  whereunto  shall  I  hken  this  generation?" — ^Matt 
11: 16. 


HIS  QUESTIONS  4T 

"Which  of  them  therefore  will  love  him  most?" — ^Luke 
7:42. 

"Seest  thou  this  woman?" — ^Luke  7: 44. 

"How  can  Satan  cast  out  Satan?" — Mark  3: 23. 

"And  if  I  by  Beelzebub  cast  out  demons,  by  whom  do 
your  sons  cast  them  out?" — ^Matt.  12:  27. 

"Or  how  can  one  enter  into  the  house  of  the  strong 
man,  unless  he  first  bind  the  strong  man?" — ^Matt.  12:  29. 

"Ye  offspring  of  vipers,  how  can  ye,  being  evil,  speak 
good  things?"— Matt.  12:  34. 

**Who  is  my  mother?"— Matt.  12:  48. 

This  list  is  drawn  from  approximately  the  first  third 
of  the  ministry  of  Jesus.  Would  it  not  be  worth  your 
while  to  complete  the  list? 

What  are  some  of  the  general  characteristics  of  the 
questions  asked  by  Jesus?  Answer  for  yourself  first,  and 
then  read  on. 

"A  leading  question"  is  one  the  very  form  of  which 
suggests  the  answer  that  is  wanted.  Did  Jesus  use  the 
leadmg  question? 

Do  you  chance  to  know  whether  Socrates  made  use  of 
leading  questions?  In  honor  of  Socrates,  questioning  is 
called  "the  Socratic  art."^ 

Is  it  better  teaching  to  use  or  not  to  use  the  leading 
question? 

Socrates  regularly  used  a  long  series  of  leading  ques- 
tions to  bring  an  idea  to  birth  in  the  mind  of  his  inter- 
locutor.   Did  Jesus  do  this? 

If  you  are  interested  in  this  topic,  read  Xenophon's 

1  For  a  comparison  of  Jesus  and  Socrates  as  questioners,  see  the  writer's  book  on 
"Story  Telling,  Questioning,  ana  Studying,'  pp.  103-110. 


48  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"Memorabilia"  and  compare  it  with  Mark,  and  Plato's 
"Phaedo"  and  compare  it  with  John.  As  Mark  and 
John  are  related  to  Jesus,  so  roughly  are  Xenophon  and 
Plato  related  to  Socrates.  In  each  case  we  have  a  master 
teacher  who  spoke  but  did  not  write  presented  to  us  by 
two  pupils,  one  prosaic  and  one  poetic. 

Take  the  following  list  of  characteristics  and  find  at 
least  one  question  of  Jesus  illustrating  it: 

Original. 

Practical. 

Personal. 

Rhetorical. 

Stimulating. 

Definite. 

Searching. 

Adapted  to  the  individual. 

Silencing. 

Clear. 

Brief. 

How  would  you  enlarge  this  list  of  the  characteristics 
of  the  questions  of  Jesus? 

Turn  to  the  purpose  of  his  questions.  For  what  pur- 
poses did  Jesus  ask  questions.'*    Make  your  own  list. 

Find  at  least  one  question  of  Jesus  used  for  each  of  the 
following  purposes: 

To  make  one  think. 

To  secure  information  for  himself  (Luke  8: 30). 

To  express  an  emotion. 

(What  emotions  are  expressed?  See  John  3: 10;  Luke 
5:22,23;  Matt.  12:34.) 

To  introduce  a  story. 


HIS  QUESTIONS  4^ 

To  follow  up  a  story. 

To  recall  the  known  (Mark  2:  25,  26). 

To  awaken  conscience  (Matt.  23: 17). 

To  elicit  faith  (Mark  8:  29). 

To  clarify  the  situation  (Mark  10:  3). 

To  rebuke  criticism  (Mark  2:  25,  26). 

To  put  one  in  a  dilemma  (Mark  3:4). 

Add  to  this  list  of  purposes. 

What  are  some  of  the  psychological  effects  of  the 
question? 

For  example,  how  does  a  good  question  affect  intelli- 
gence? interest?  attention?  memory?  even  conduct?  To 
what  other  psychological  effects  would  you  refer? 

There  were  certain  questions  asked  by  Jesus  which  his 
critics  were  unable  or  unwilling  to  answer.  Can  you 
recall  some? 

Among  these  were  the  following: 

"Is  it  lawful  on  the  sabbath  to  do  good,  or  to  do  harm? 
to  save  a  life  or  to  destroy  it?  But  they  held  their  peace" 
(Luke  6:  9). 

"Which  of  you  shall  have  an  ass  or  an  ox  fallen  into  a 
well,  and  will  not  straightway  draw  him  up  on  a  sabbath 
day?  And  they  could  not  answer  again  unto  these  things" 
(Luke  14:  5,  6). 

"The  baptism  of  John,  whence  was  it,  from  heaven  or 
from  men?  .  .  .  And  they  answered  Jesus,  and  said.  We 
cannot  tell"  (Matt.  21:  25-27). 

"If  David  then  calleth  him  Lord,  how  is  he  his  son? 
And  no  one  was  able  to  answer  him  a  word"  (Matt.  22 
45,  46). 

Why  did  Jesus  ask  each  of  these  questions? 


60  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Can  you  think  of  others  he  asked  they  did  not  answer? 

Why  did  they  not  answer  in  each  case? 

If  they  were  unable  to  answer,  why  did  not  Jesus 
answer  for  them?  Pay  particular  attention  to  this  ques- 
tion.   Study  Luke  22:  67. 

How  would  you  answer  each  of  the  questions  the  Jews 
did  not  answer — especially  the  one  concerning  David's 
son? 

With  what  manner  do  you  picture  Jesus  asking  ques- 
tions? 

Earnest? 

Sympathetic? 

Inquisitorial? 

Deliberate? 

Reproving? 

Spontaneous? 

Any  other  manner? 

Cite  at  least  one  question  illustrating  each  of  your 
answers. 

Do  you  think  Jesus  ever  prepared  any  question  in 
advance  of  using  it?  For  example,  that  concerning  the 
baptism  of  John,  or  the  Christ  as  the  son  of  David. 

There  was  at  least  one  question  Jesus  asked  of  God. 
What  was  it?    See  Mark  15:  34. 

How  do  you  interpret  this  question? 

What  is  its  answer? 

Does  the  twenty-second  psalm,  from  which  it  is  a 
quotation,  throw  any  light  on  the  answer? 

Jesus  petitioned  God  for  many  things — did  he  ever  ask 
any  other  question  of  God? 

From  this  study  do  you  get  the  impression  that  the 


HIS  QUESTIONS  51 

atmosphere  of  Jesus  was  lethargic,  or  charged  with  intel- 
lectual inquiry? 

Choosing  between  these  two  things,  would  you  say 
that  Jesus  came  to  ask  questions  or  to  answer  them? 
Of  course  he  came  to  do  both,  and  did  both,  and  many 
other  things  besides,  but  which  of  these  two  did  he  do 
mainly? 

•    Read  the  following  quotation  from  Dr.  Merrill,  and 
see  if  you  agree  with  him: 

"His  aim,  as  the  Great  Teacher  of  men,  was,  and  ever 
is,  not  to  relieve  the  reason  and  conscience  of  mankind, 
not  to  lighten  the  burden  of  thought  and  study,  but 
rather  to  increase  that  burden,  to  make  men  more  con- 
scientious, more  eager,  more  active  in  mind  and  moral 
sense. 

"That  is  to  say.  He  came  not  to  answer  questions,  but 
to  ask  them;  not  to  settle  men's  souls,  but  to  provoke 
them;  not  to  save  men  from  problems,  but  to  save  them 
from  their  indolence;  not  to  make  life  easier,  but  to  make 
it  more  educative.  We  are  quite  in  error  when  we  think 
of  Christ  as  coming  to  give  us  a  key  to  life's  diflScult 
textbook.  He  came  to  give  us  a  finer  textbook,  calling 
for  keener  study,  and  deeper  devotion,  and  more  intelli- 
gent and  persistent  reasoning."^ 

One  of  the  reputed  sayings  of  Jesus  is:  "They  who 
question  shall  reign."  Do  you  think  it  sounds  like  him? 
Or  is  it  too  consciously  pedagogic  or  philosophic,  as  were 
the  Greeks? 

Francis  Bacon  said:  "The  skilful  question  is  the  half  of 
knowledge."  Would  you  agree?  Can  the  skilful  ques- 
tion be  asked  without  knowledge? 


*  W.  p.  Merrill,  "Christian  Internationalism,"  pp.  42,  43. 


it  JEStJS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

What  would  be  a  good  badge  of  the  teacher's  profes- 
sion? 

What  other  phase  of  the  topic,  "Jesus  as  Questioner," 
would  you  like  to  consider? 

How  may  we  become  better  questioners? 


CHAPTER  IX 
HIS  ANSWERS 

Suppose  you  were  going  to  present  this  topic,  how 
would  you  do  it? 

Should  teachers  be  as  ready  to  answer  questions  as  to 
ask  them? 

What  if  they  don't  know  the  answer? 

Which  is  the  more  natural  situation,  when  pupils  or 
teachers  ask  the  questions? 

When  are  questions  irrelevant  or  out  of  order? 

What  should  the  answer  to  such  be? 

As  we  studied  the  earlier  part  of  the  ministry  for  Jesus' 
questions,  we  will  study  the  latter  part  for  his  answers, 
so  as  not  to  duplicate  material. 

First,  study  for  yourself  a  few  of  the  answers  he  gave. 
Note  their  characteristics.  Find  them  in  Matt.  22,  Mark 
12,  and  Luke  20. 

Let  us  study  some  of  his  answers.  After  speaking  his 
first  parable  concerning  the  four  kinds  of  soils,  his  dis- 
ciples asked,  "Why  do  you  speak  in  parables?"  See  his 
long,  full  answer  in  Matt.  13:  10-23.  What  is  his  answer 
in  brief?     Was  it  satisfactory  to  the  disciples  ?    Is  it  to  you  ? 

Note  also  that  even  the  disciples  did  not  understand 
this  parable.  This  seems  to  have  surprised  Jesus  (Mark 
4:13).  But  at  their  request  he  explained  its  meaning. 
He  made  his  meaning  plain  to  those  who  desired  it  and  he 
explained  why  he  used  "dark  sayings"  at  all. 

In  the  midst  of  the  sudden  storm  that  swept  down  on 

53 


54  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

the  lake,  they  awoke  him,  saying,  "Master,  carest  thou 
not  that  we  perish?"  First,  he  quieted  the  sea,  and  then 
asked,  "Why  are  you  afraid  Hke  this?  Why  not  have 
faith?" 

What  is  significant  in  his  answer  here? 

At  least  three  things  stand  out.  First  of  all  he  answers 
the  question  of  alarm  by  doing  something.  Then,  after 
quiet  was  restored  and  their  paroxysm  of  fear  was  past, 
he  replied,  not  to  their  question,  but  to  their  real  need 
with  two  other  rhetorical  questions,  in  which  he  rebuked 
their  fearfulness  and  its  cause — lack  of  faith.  This  ques- 
tion he  answered  with  a  deed,  and  themselves  he  answered 
by  asking  two  more  questions. 

At  the  feast  of  Matthew  Levi  the  Pharisees  and  their 
scribes  murmured  against  his  disciples,  and  asked:  "Why 
eateth  your  Teacher  with  the  publicans  and  sinners?" 
The  reply  of  Jesus  was:  "They  that  are  whole  have  no 
need  of  a  physician,  but  they  that  are  sick.  But  go  ye 
and  learn  what  this  meaneth,  I  desire  mercy  and  not 
sacrifice:  for  I  came  not  to  call  the  righteous  but  sinners" 
(Matt.  9: 11-13). 

Study  this  answer  carefully.  Note  the  figure  of  speech 
in  the  answer.  Also  the  quotation  from  Hosea.  Also 
the  statement  of  his  mission. 

Is  there  any  sarcasm  in  referring  to  the  Pharisees  as 
"whole"  and  not  needing  a  physician? 

Their  question  implied  a  criticism  of  his  conduct.  His 
reply  justified  his  intimate  association  at  table  with  tax- 
gatherers  and  sinners. 

Some  of  the  disciples  of  John  asked  him:  "Why  do  we 
and  the  Pharisees  fast  oft,  but  thy  disciples  fast  not?*' 


HIS  ANSWERS  55 

Jesus  had  the  greatest  respect  for  John  and  his  disciples, 
though  their  viewpoints  of  the  kingdom  were  antipodal. 
This  question  was  not  asked  in  criticism.  John's  dis- 
ciples were  honestly  puzzled  and  wanted  light.  Jesus  re- 
plied: "Can  the  sons  of  the  bridechamber  fast  while  the 
bridegroom  is  with  them?  as  long  as  they  have  the 
bridegroom  with  them  they  cannot  fast.  But  the  days 
will  come,  when  the  bridegroom  shall  be  taken  away 
from  them,  and  then  will  they  fast  in  that  day'*  (Mark 
2:  19,  20). 

What  a  beautiful  figure  of  speech!  Who  was  the 
bridegroom? 

How  gentle  this  reply!  With  all  tenderness  a  full  ex- 
planation is  given  why  his  disciples  did  not  fast. 

To  that  part  of  their  question,  "Why  do  we  fast?" 
Jesus  did  not  reply.  Is  there  anything  significant  in  this? 
Did  Jesus  want  to  avoid  any  criticism  of  John  to  his 
disciples? 

Is  there  tact  in  this  answer? 

Why  did  he  refer  to  the  time  when  his  disciples  would 
fast? 

In  his  answer  he  passes  on  to  give  the  parable  of  the 
new  wine  and  the  new  cloth.  What  is  the  bearing  of  this 
parable  on  the  situation?  Does  it  contain  by  implication 
the  answer  to  the  original  first  part  of  their  question: 
"Why  do  we  fast"?  Note  the  delicacy  of  putting  the 
implied  criticism  of  John's  system  in  a  parable. 

One  of  his  disciples,  Andrew,  Simon  Peter's  brother,  at 
the  time  of  the  feeding  of  the  five  thousand,  said  unto 
him:  "There  is  a  lad  here,  who  hath  ^ve  barley  loaves 
and  two  fishes:  but  what  are  these  among  so  many?" 


56  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

(John  6:9.)  "And  he  said,  Bring  them  hither  to  me" 
(Matt.  14:18). 

There  is  a  wonderful  meaning  hidden  in  this  answer 
to  a  hopeless  question.    Think  it  out. 

The  whole  sixth  chapter  of  John  is  a  very  mine  for 
studying  Jesus'  answers  to  questions. 

The  Pharisees  and  the  scribes  asked  him:  "Why  walk 
not  thy  disciples  according  to  the  tradition  of  the  elders, 
but  eat  their  bread  with  defiled  hands  .f^" 

His  reply  was:  "Well  did  Isaiah  prophesy  of  you  hypo- 
crites, as  it  is  written.  This  people  honoreth  me  with  their 
lips,  but  their  heart  is  far  from  me.  But  in  vain  do  they 
worship  me,  teaching  as  their  doctrines  the  precepts  of 
men.  Ye  leave  the  commandment  of  God,  and  hold  fast 
the  tradition  of  men."  Then  he  passes  on  to  speak  of 
Corban  and  gives  the  parable  concerning  defilement. 
Read  it  all  in  Mark  7:  9-23. 

Does  Jesus  speak  to  the  Pharisees  in  the  same  spirit 
as  to  John's  disciples?  What  is  the  difference?  Why  this 
difference? 

Note  he  answers  with  a  question,  with  a  quotation 
from  Isaiah,  with  an  illustration  of  his  charge,  and  with  a 
parable.  Does  the  fullness  of  this  reply  denote  any  exas- 
peration with  the  Pharisees? 

Compare  this  answer  with  that  given  the  Pharisees  and 
Sadducees  on  seeking  a  sign.  See  it  in  Matt.  16: 1-4. 
Again  there  is  an  illustration,  a  charge,  and  an  Old  Testa- 
ment reference. 

Coming  down  from  the  mount  of  transfiguration,  the 
disciples  asked  him:  "Why  then  say  the  scribes  that 
Elijah  must  first  come?"     And  he  answered  and  said. 


HIS  ANSWERS  57 

"Elijah  indeed  cometh,  and  shall  restore  all  things:  but 
I  say  unto  you,  that  Elijah  is  come  already,  and  they 
knew  him  not,  but  did  unto  him  whatsoever  they  would. 
Even  so  shall  the  Son  of  man  also  suflFer  of  them"  (Matt. 
17: 10-12). 

This  reply  accepts  a  scribal  teaching,  but  gives  it  a 
new  interpretation.  Did  Jesus  then  believe  in  reincarna- 
tion? Who  was  this  Elijah?  Did  John  regard  himself 
as  Elijah?  (See  John  1:21.)  Note  the  readiness  with 
which  Jesus  answers  questions,  even  this  one  involving 
technical  scribal  exegesis.    How  do  you  explain  this? 

After  his  healing  of  the  demoniac  boy  following  the 
Transfiguration,  the  disciples  came  unto  Jesus  when  he 
was  come  into  the  house,  and  asked  him  privately,  "Why 
could  not  we  cast  it  out?" 

"And  he  saith  unto  them:  Because  of  your  httle  faith: 
for  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  ye  have  faith  as  a  grain  of 
mustard  seed,  ye  shall  say  unto  this  mountain.  Remove 
hence  to  yonder  place;  and  it  shall  remove;  and  nothing 
shall  be  impossible  unto  you"  (Matt.  17:  20).  "This  kind 
can  come  out  by  nothing,  save  by  prayer"  (Mark  9:  29). 

What  do  you  see  in  this  answer? 

What  could  Jesus  have  meant  by  "faith"? 

Are  his  words  to  be  taken  literally?  If  so,  has  anyone 
ever  had  this  faith?  If  not,  what  does  the  figure  mean? 
What  kind  of  a  figure  is  it? 

The  answer  connects  faith  and  prayer.  What  is  the 
connection  in  the  practice  of  healing? 

These  illustrations  of  the  answers  of  Jesus  might  be 
greatly  extended.  Let  us  take  only  one  more  very  in- 
structive one. 


58  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

The  Jews  marveled  at  his  teaching  given  in  the  temple 
at  the  feast  of  tabernacles,  saying,  "How  knoweth  this 
man  letters,  having  never  learned?"  His  reply  was:  "If 
any  man  willeth  to  do  his  will,  he  shall  know  of  the 
teaching,  whether  it  be  of  God,  or  whether  I  speak  from 
myself."    This  was  not  all  he  said;  see  it  in  John  7: 17-19. 

Was  this  an  answer  at  all  to  the  question?  If  so  what 
is  its  meaning? 

Find  and  study  the  replies  of  Jesus  to  the  following 
questions: 

"What  then  sayest  thou  of  her?" 

"Where  is  thy  father?"  (Was  this  intended  as  an  in- 
sulting taunt?) 

"How  sayest  thou.  Ye  shall  be  made  free?" 

"Say  we  not  well  that  thou  art  a  Samaritan  and  hast  a 
devil?" 

"Hast  thou  seen  Abraham?" 

"How  oft  shall  my  brother  sin  against  me  and  I  forgive 
him?" 

"Wilt  thou  that  we  bid  fire  to  come  down  from  heaven, 
and  consume  them?" 

"What  shall  I  do  to  inherit  eternal  life?" 

"Who  is  my  neighbor?" 

"Speakest  thou  this  parable  unto  us,  or  even  unto  all?" 

"Are  they  few  that  be  saved?" 

"Is  it  lawful  for  a  man  to  put  away  his  wife?" 

"Why  did  Moses  command  to  give  a  bill  of  divorce- 
ment?" 

"What  good  thing  shall  I  do  that  I  may  inherit  eternal 
life?" 

"What  lack  I  yet?" 


HIS  ANSWERS  59 

"Who  then  can  be  saved?" 

"What  then  shall  we  have?" 

"Dost  thou  not  care  that  my  sister  did  leave  me  to 
serve  alone?" 

"Who  did  sin,  this  man  or  his  parents,  that  he  should 
be  born  blind?"  (Did  the  disciples  then  believe  that  a 
man's  own  sin  might  cause  him  to  be  born  blind?    How?) 

"Who  is  he,  Lord,  that  I  may  believe  on  him?" 

"How  long  dost  thou  hold  us  in  suspense?" 

"Hearest  thou  what  these  are  saying?" 

"By  what  authority  doest  thou  these  things?" 

"Is  it  lawful  to  give  tribute  unto  Csesar  or  not?" 

"Whose  wife  shall  she  be?" 

"Which  is  the  great  commandment  in  the  law?" 

"Where  wilt  thou  that  we  make  ready  for  thee  to  eat 
the  passover?" 

"Dost  thou  wash  my  feet?" 

"Is  it  I?" 

"How  know  we  the  way?" 

"Answerest  thou  the  high  priest  so?" 

"Art  thou  the  Christ?" 

"Art  thou  the  King  of  the  Jews?" 

"Speakest  thou  not  unto  me?" 

"What  shall  this  man  do?" 

"Dost  thou  at  this  time  restore  the  kingdom  to  Israel?" 

If  you  have  difficulty  in  finding  some  of  these  ques- 
tions, use  a  good  concordance. 

Ought  we  to  know  the  gospels  practically  by  heart? 

How  well  do  the  Chinese  scholars  know  Confucius? 

Are  you  surprised  at  the  number  of  questions  asked  of 
Jesus? 


60  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

There  are  many  not  in  the  list  given  above.  Can  you 
add  to  it? 

Before  two  questioners  Jesus  did  not  answer.  Who 
were  these?    Why  did  he  not  answer  in  each  case? 

Jesus  asked  some  questions  that  his  critics  could  not 
answer.  Did  they  ever  ask  him  a  question  he  could  not 
answer? 

Was  the  attitude  of  Jesus  encouraging  to  questioners? 
(See  John  16: 19.) 

Did  Jesus  answer  the  questioner  as  well  as  the  question? 
This  is  one  of  the  most  significant  things  about  his  an- 
swers. Illustrate  from  his  answer  to  the  Sadducees 
concerning  the  resurrection. 

A  good  teacher  is  not  only  ready  to  answer,  but  he 
makes  the  most  of  the  answers  of  his  pupils.  Did  Jesus 
do  this?  In  what  instances?  Recall  such  comments  as: 
"In  that  saidst  thou  truly,"  and  "Thou  art  not  far  from 
the  kingdom  of  God.'* 

It  is  time  to  sum  up.  Draw  up  a  list  of  the  main 
characteristics  of  the  answers  of  Jesus. 

Give  at  least  one  answer  that  illustrates  each  of  the 
following  characteristics: 

Informational,  i.  e.,  his  answer  gave  information. 

Profound  (for  a  series  of  ever  profounder  answers,  see 
John  6). 

An  answer  in  the  form  of  a  question. 

An  answer  in  the  form  of  a  dilemma. 

An  answer  to  the  questioner  as  well  as  the  question.] 

A  real  but  not  obvious  answer.  ^  (See  Luke  17:  37.) 

An  answer  different  from  the  one  wanted. 

An  answer  in  the  form  of  a  story. 


HIS  ANSWERS  61 

Silence  in  answer. 

An  indirect  answer  (see  Matt.  18: 1-6). 

A  practical  answer  to  an  academic  question  (Luke  13: 
23,  24). 

Are  there  still  other  characteristics  of  his  answers? 

Was  he  ever  caught  "napping"? 

One  of  the  characteristics  of  genius  is  ever  to  be  at  one's 
physical  and  moral  best.    Was  this  true  of  Jesus? 

One  of  my  students  once  gave  me  the  following  outline 
in  a  report  on  "The  Answers  of  Jesus."  Read  it  with  a 
view  to  agreeing  or  disagreeing  with  its  views. 

Outline 

1.  He  answered  in  good  faith. 

He  never  laughed  at  a  question. 

He  never  hedged,  or  dodged  a  vital  question. 

He  never  answered,  "I  don't  know." 

2.  His  answer  was  dependent  on  the  motive  back  of  the 

question. 
He  did  not  satisfy  curiosity — "no  sign  shall  be  given." 
"By  what  authority  doest  thou  these  things?"    "I  also 

will  ask  you  one  question." 
Vital  questions  received  a  straight  answer.    Matt.  26: 

63,  64. 

3.  They  tended  to  lead  to  more  thinking. 

Lead  questions:  "Whom  do  men  say  that  I  am?" 
"What  is  written  in  the  law?" 

4.  His  answers  often  called  for  action. 
"Where  dwellest  thou?"    "Come  and  see." 

"What  must  I  do  to  inherit?"  "Sell,  give,  come,  follow." 

5.  His  answers  contained  concrete  illustrations. 


62  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"Who  is  my  neighbor?"    The  Good  Samaritan. 

What  do  you  think  of  this  outline? 
What  may  we  learn  in  our  own  practice  from  the  an- 
swers of  Jesus?    Give  some  time  to  this  question. 

Some  References  on  His  Questions  and  Answers 
Barnard,  P.  M.,  Art.  "Questions  and  Answers,"  in  "Dic- 
tionary of  Christ  and  the  Gospels." 
Denney,  "Gospel  Questions  and  Answers." 
Knight,  "The  Master's  Questions  to  His  Disciples." 
Home,  "Story-Telling,  Questioning,  and  Studying." 


Brown's  Famous  Pictures  A.  Bida 

THE    SERMON   ON   THE    MOUNT 


CHAPTER  X    . 
HIS  DISCOURSES 

Under  what  circumstances  is  it  proper  for  a  teacher  to 
lecture? 

Think  of  the  right  answer  to  this  question. 

Is  the  lecturing  that  leaves  the  group  passive  and  im- 
pressed justifiable? 

Is  it  proper  to  lecture  on  material  with  which  the  group 
is  already  acquainted? 

Is  it  best  to  lecture  to  a  small  and  informal  group? 

To  what  extent  can  you  give  another  man  an  idea? 

"No  impression  without  expression"  is  an  educational 
principle.    How  would  this  principle  affect  lecturing? 

If  we  could  discuss  these  questions  together,  we  might 
conclude  that  lecturing  is  justifiable  when  the  lecturer  has 
something  new  to  say;  when  the  group  is  large,  too  large 
for  question  and  answer  and  for  discussion;  when  the 
occasion  is  consequently  somewhat  formal.  But  in  all 
these  cases,  if  possible,  the  lecture  should  be  followed  by 
discussion  and  conference. 

One  is  sometimes  forced  into  lecturing  because  of  the 
unpreparedness  of  the  group,  though  small,  to  ask,  to 
answer,  or  to  discuss.  If  there  are  any  such  groups! 
Social  habit  in  any  community  also  has  something  to  do 
with  the  passive  or  active  attitude  of  the  auditors. 

Can  you  think  of  other  circumstances  under  which  one 
should  lectm-e — e.  g.  when  immediate  information  is  de- 
manded as  a  basis  of  judgment? 

Did  Jesus  ever  make  use  of  the  lecture  method?  Preach- 


64  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

ing  is,  of  course,  one  form  of  this  method.  The  difference 
probably  between  an  academic  lecture  and  a  sermon  is 
that  the  former  appeals  mainly  to  the  intellect,  while 
the  latter  appeals  mainly  to  the  emotions  and  the  will; 
that  is,  the  former  communicates  ideas  and  the  latter 
awakens  impulses. 

Were  the  discourses  of  Jesus  academic  or  practical  in 
character? 

It  is  easy  to  begin  by  thinking  of  the  'places  where 
Jesus  spoke  his  discourses. 

Recall  all  you  can  now.    Do  this  before  you  read  on. 

Among  these  places  are:  The  mountain;  the  lakeside; 
the  synagogue  in  Nazareth,  also  in  Capernaum  and  in 
many  other  towns  and  cities;  the  Mount  of  Olives,  from 
which  the  Lament  over  Jerusalem  was  uttered;  Bethesda, 
in  Jerusalem;  private  homes;  the  open  country;  and  the 
Temple. 

Can  you  add  to  this  list? 

In  what  place,  if  any,  would  Jesus  be  unwilling  to  speak? 

Think  next  of  the  occasions  of  his  discourses.  What 
were  some  of  these? 

Among  such  occasions  are:  The  sight  of  the  multitudes; 
a  question  asked-by  one  of  the  crowd,  receiving  a  longer 
answer  than  usual;  a  criticism  passed  upon  some  wonder- 
ful work  of  healing  done;  the  sending  forth  of  the  twelve, 
and  also  of  the  seventy;  the  calumny  that  he  had  a  devil, 
requiring  refutation;  the  synagogue  service  on  the  Sab- 
bath day;  the  departure  of  the  messengers  of  John;  the 
charge  that  he  cast  out  devils  by  the  prince  of  devils; 
the  demand  for  a  sign;  a  question  from  the  disciples,  re- 
quiring a  full  answer,  concerning,  say,  the  meaning  of 


HIS  DISCOURSES  65 

one  of  the  parables,  though  only  disciples  heard  such 
explanations. 

Add  to  this  list  of  occasions  when  Jesus  used  the  method 
of  public  discourse.  You  will  have  little  difficulty  in  doing 
so.  ♦ 

Think  about  the  length  of  these  discourses.  Which  is 
the  longest  one  recorded.^  Where  may  it  be  found? 
How  many  minutes  would  it  require  to  read  this  entire 
utterance  aloud  in  a  deliberate  manner.'*  Why  not  do  so 
and  see?    (Is  it  Matt.  5-7,  or  John  14-17?) 

Do  you  get  the  impression  that  the  evangelists  give  us 
the  full  discourse  in  each  case  or  only  portions?  (See  the 
remarkable  statement  in  John  21 :  25.)  Are  there  in- 
stances of  their  referring  to  preaching  journeys  without 
stating  his  utterances?  (See  Matt.  4:  23.)  Why  do  you 
suppose  his  discourses  were  not  more  fully  recorded? 
Do  you  suppose  that  on  different  occasions  Jesus 
spoke  similarly  on  similar  themes?  Of  course  our  an- 
swers to  many  questions  must  remain  in  the  realm  of 
opinion. 

Do  you  think  the  report  in  Matthew  of  the  Sermon  on 
the  Mount,  taking  about  twenty  minutes  to  read  aloud 
deliberately,  may  be  a  condensation  of  what  Jesus  ac- 
tually said  at  greater  length?  Or,  may  it  contain  parts 
of  different  discourses?  For  this  last  question  compare 
Luke  6:  20-49  with  Matt.  5:  3  to  7:  27,  noting  how  much 
more  material  Matthew  reports  than  Luke. 

Some  think  that  the  spoken  discourse  of  Jesus  may 
have  occupied  a  longer  time  through  his  addressing  only 
those  near  him,  say,  as  he  sat  on  the  mount,  and  these  in 
turn  passing  back  his  words  to  the  others.    What  do  you 


66  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

think  of  this?  Would  it  be  a  good  method,  psychologi- 
cally? 

To  what  audiences  did  Jesus  speak  publicly?  Recall 
for  yourself. 

These  audiences  were  differently  composed  at  different 
times. 

Regularly  some  of  the  twelve  disciples  were  present, 
though  what  makes  his  discourse  "public"  is  that  others 
than  the  twelve  disciples  heard  him  at  some  length  on  a 
given  theme.  These  others  were  at  times  some  of  his 
followers,  the  apostles;  or  more  or  less  sympathetic  men, 
women,  and  children  from  the  neighboring  towns  or  even 
countries;  or  at  times  hostile  critics  from  Jerusalem;  or 
assembled  guests  at  a  social  dinner.  His  audiences  thus 
were  groups  mixed  in  various  ways,  from  the  standpoints 
of  social  standing,  sex,  sympathy  with  him,  and  age. 

How  otherwise  would  you  characterize  his  audiences? 

Would  you  regard  Jesus  as  a  master  of  assemblies? 

By  the  way,  of  what  church  was  Jesus  pastor?  And 
to  what  denomination  did  he  belong?  Was  he  a  member 
of  the  congregation  of  a  Jewish  synagogue?  If  so,  where? 
Did  he  cease  to  be  such?  If  so,  when?  What  difference 
to  us  do  the  answers  to  such  questions  make? 

Upon  what  themes  did  Jesus  speak?  Or,  did  he  rather 
give  expository  sermons  on  Old  Testament  texts?  Did 
he  ever  do  the  latter?    (Cf.  Luke  4: 16-22.) 

Among  his  themes  note  the  following: 

The  Meaning  of  the  Parable  of  the  Tares,  Matt.  13: 
36-52. 

The  Leaven  of  the  Pharisees,  Matt.  16: 5-12. 

His  Church,  Matt.  16: 13-20. 


HIS  DISCOURSES  67 

His  Coming  Death,  Matt.  16:  21-28. 

His  Coming  Death  (again),  Matt.  17:  22,  23. 

His  Coming  Death  (still  again),  Matt.  20: 17-19. 

Elijah's  Having  Come,  Matt.  17:  9-13. 

The  Mission  of  the  Seventy,  Luke  10: 1-24. 

Prayer,  Luke  11:1-13. 

The  Unjust  Steward,  Luke  16: 1-13. 

Occasions  of  Stumbling,  Luke  17: 1-4. 

Unprofitable  Servants,  Luke  17:  5-10. 

Faith,  Matt.  21:21,  22. 

Humility,  John  13: 12-20. 

The  Lord's  Supper,  Matt.  26:  26-29. 

The  Suffering  of  the  Christ,  Luke  24: 17-27. 

The  Preaching  of  Repentance,  Luke  24 :  36-49. 

Feeding  the  Lambs  and  Sheep,  John  21: 15-23. 

The  Great  Commission,  Matt.  28:  16-19. 

The  nineteen  discourses  listed  above  are  short  and  were 
delivered  to  a  portion  of  the  Twelve,  or  to  all  the  Twelve, 
or  to  these  with  still  others  of  his  followers  present. 
These  could  not  strictly  be  called  "public"  discourses,  as 
outsiders  did  not  hear  them.  Some  of  these  discourses 
may  have  been  longer  than  reported. 

The  following  four  discourses  were  delivered  to  the 
same  chosen  groups  as  above,  but  are  reported  at  greater 
length : 

The  Mission  of  the  Twelve,  Matt.  10: 1-42. 

True  Greatness,  the  Sinning  Brother,  and  Forgiveness 
— one  complex  discourse.  Matt.  18. 

The  Second  Coming,  the  Ten  Virgins,  the  Talents,  and 
the  Last  Judgment — one  discourse,  Matt.  24,  25.  (Cf .  "all 
these  words,"  Matt.  26:  1.) 


68  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

The  Farewell  Discourse  and  Prayer,  John  14-17.  (Is 
this  the  longest  recorded  continuous  utterance  of  Jesus?) 

Upon  the  following  eight  themes  he  spoke  to  mixed 
audiences,  apparently  small,  of  disciples  and  others: 

Fasting,  Luke  5:  33-39. 

Sabbath  Observance,  Matt.  12: 1-8. 

Following  Him,  Luke  9:  57-62. 

Eternal  Life  and  the  Good  Samaritan,  Luke  10 :  25-37. 

Divorce,  Matt.  19:  3-12. 

The  Peril  of  Wealth,  Matt.  19: 16-30. 

The  Laborers  in  the  Vineyard,  Matt.  20: 1-16. 

His  Death  and  Glory,  John  12:  20-26. 

Upon  the  following  (how  many  .^)  themes  he  spoke  briefly 
to  mixed  audiences,apparently  large,  of  disciples  and  others: 

Blasphemy,  Matt.  12:  22-37. 

Signs,  Matt.  12:38-45. 

Signs  (again).  Matt.  16: 1-4. 

Signs  (still  again),  and  Demons,  Luke  11: 14-36. 

Traditions,  Matt.  15: 1-20. 

Denunciation  of  the  Pharisees,  Covetousness,  Trust, 
Watchfulness,  the  Faithful  Steward,  Division,  and  In- 
terpreting the  Time — one  discourse,  Luke  12. 

Repentance,  and  the  Barren  Fig  Tree,  Luke  13: 1-9. 

The  Good  Shepherd,  John  10: 1-18. 

His  Messiahship,  John  10:  22-38. 

Sabbath  HeaHng,  the  Mustard  Seed,  and  Leaven,  Luke 
13:10-21. 

The  Elect,  Luke  13:  23-30. 

The  Lament  over  Jerusalem,  Luke  13:  34,  35. 

Counting  the  Cost,  Luke  14:  25-35. 

The  Rich  Man  and  Lazarus,  Luke  16:  14-31. 


HIS  DISCOURSES  69 

The  Coming  of  the  Kingdom,  Luke  17:  20-37. 

Prayer,  the  Importunate  Widow,  the  Pharisee  and 
PubHcan,  Luke  18: 1-14. 

His  Authority,  Tribute  to  Caesar,  the  Resurrection,  the 
Great  Commandment,  the  Son  of  David — ^pubHc  repHes 
to  critics  in  the  Temple,  Luke  20. 

Behef  and  Unbehef,  John  12:  44-50. 

Upon  the  following  themes  he  spoke  at  length  to  mixed 
audiences  of  disciples  and  others : 

The  New  Kingdom,  Matt.  5-7.  ("The  Sermon  on  the 
Mount.") 

His  Relations  with  the  Father,  John  5 :  19-47. 

John  the  Baptist,  Matt.  11:  7-30. 

The  First  Group  of  Parables,  Matt.  13: 1-53. 

The  Second  Group  of  Parables,  Luke  15-17: 10. 

The  Bread  of  Life,  John  6:  22-65. 

His  Mission,  John  7-8. 

Denunciation  of  the  Pharisees,  Matt.  23:  1-39.  (Was 
this  his  last  public  discourse?) 

Upon  the  following  themes  he  spoke  to  others  than  the 
disciples,  whose  presence  is  not  clearly  implied: 

Forgiveness,  the  Two  Debtors,  Luke  7:  36-50. 

Tradition,  Matt.  15: 1-20. 

Denunciation  of  Pharisees  and  Lawyers,  Luke  11 :  37-54. 

Modesty,  Giving  Feasts,  the  Great  Supper,  and  Ex- 
cuses, Luke  14: 1-24. 

Salvation  to  Zacchseus,  with  Parable  of  the  Pounds, 
Luke  19:1-27. 

Reviewing  the  main  themes^  upon  which  Jesus  spoke, 

^For  these  classifications  of  themes  I  am  indebted  to  the  article  by  E.  C. 
Dorgan,  in  "Dictionary  of  Christ  and  the  Gospels,"  on  "Discourse." 


70  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

what  is  your  impression  as  to  (1)  their  comprehensive- 
ness; (2)  their  adaptation  to  the  needs  of  his  day?  How 
many  different  themes  do  you  estimate  there  are?  An- 
ticipate here  the  later  question:  What  may  we  learn  from 
the  discourses  of  Jesus? 

Recall  also  the  many  references  to  discourses  of  his 
with  little  or  no  mention  of  themes.  (Cf.  Matt.  4: 
17;  Matt.  4:23,  24;  Luke  5:17;  Luke  8:1-3;  Mark  6: 
1-6;  Matt.  9:  35-38;  Matt.  11: 1;  Luke  13: 10,  22;  Mark 
11:17.) 

To  appreciate  both  the  form  and  the  content  of  the 
discourses  of  Jesus,  take  one  of  the  longer  ones,  and  make 
an  outline  of  it,  indicating  the  main  points. 

The  following  will  serve  as  an  example  of  such  an  out- 
line. No  two  outlines  made  by  different  persons  will  be 
exactly  alike.  You  will  note  here  that  in  addition  to  the 
main  points  the  outline  provides  an  introduction  and  a 
conclusion  from  the  record  itself,  and  also  introduces  a 
summary  not  in  the  record.  Note  whether  the  outline 
is  strengthened  or  weakened  by  these  additions. 

How  would  you  modify  this  outline? 

Outline  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 
I.  Introduction:   the   Multitudes,   the   Disciples,   the 

Master,  Matt.  4:  25,  5: 1,  2. 
11.  The  Main  Points: 

A.  Beginning:  The  nine  Beatitudes:  a  new  set  of 
values.  Matt.  5:  3-12. 

B.  Middle: 

1.  His  disciples  are  salt  and  light.  Matt.  5: 
13-16. 


HIS  DISCOURSES  71 

2.  Jesus  fulfils  the  law  and  the  prophets, 

Matt.  5:  17-48. — Five  illustrations: 
Murder,  adultery,  oaths,  retaliation, 
enemies. 

3.  Righteousness  before  God,  not  men.  Matt. 

6:  1-18. — ^Three  illustrations:  Alms- 
giving, prayer,  fasting. 

4.  The  true  treasure  is  heavenly.  Matt.  6: 

19-24. 

5.  Anxiety  not  for  disciples.  Matt.  6:  25-34. 

6.  Judgment  of  others  condemned,  Matt.  7: 

1-5. 

7.  Reverence  for  sacred  things.  Matt.  7:  6. 

8.  Seeking  and  finding.  Matt.  7:  7-11. 

9.  The  Golden  Rule,  Matt.  7: 12. 

10.  The  two  gates.  Matt.  7: 13,  14. 

11.  Warning  against  false  prophets.  Matt.  7: 

15-23. 
C.  Application:  The  two  foundations.  Matt.  7: 
24-27. 

III,  Summary:  Jesus  sets  forth  the  constitution  of  the 

Kingdom  of  Heaven. 

IV.  Ending:  The  multitudes  are  astonished  and  follow, 

Matt.  7:  28-8: 1. 

A  friend  kindly  provides  me  with  this  suggestion  about 
condensing  the  several  main  points: 

"Does  it  not  naturally  fall  into  two  big  heads?  The 
first  part  of  the  material  has  to  do  with  how  Jesus'  stan- 
dard of  morality  is  different  from  that  current.  'Ye  have 
heard'  and  T  say  unto  you.'  The  second  part  deals  with 
how  Jesus'  emphasis  in  religion  was  different.    The  Phari- 


72  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

sees  emphasized  the  trinity  of  virtues,  almsgiving,  prayer, 
and  fasting,  and  criticized  those  who  did  not  conform. 
Jesus  insisted  upon  reaUty  (doing  things  in  secret), 
charity  (judge  not  that  ye  be  not  judged),  deeds  (not 
every  one  that  saith  unto  me). 

"Might  it  not  be  better  to  classify  this  material  of 
eleven  points  in  a  couple  of  big  heads.''" 

What  do  you  think  of  this  suggestion.'^ 

Thinking  over  the  whole  range  of  the  discourses  of 
Jesus,  how  would  you  characterize  them  in  a  general  way? 

Are  they  interesting.?  profound.'^  original .^^  authorita- 
tive? serious?  practical?  formal?  academic?  convincing? 
persuasive?  self-conscious?  full  of  variety?  monotonous? 
personal?  direct?  self-assertive?  novel?  thoughtful? 
searching?  scientific?  artistic?  literary?  social?  moral? 
spiritual?  entertaining?  amusing?  diverting?  simple? 
uplifting?  transforming?  intellectual?  emotional?  truth- 
ful? gracious? 

Check  off  in  this  list  of  possible  characteristics  the 
ones  you  regard  as  applicable  to  the  discourses  of  Jesus. 
You  may  want  to  reread  some  of  them  before  doing  so. 

In  what  manner  do  you  picture  Jesus  as  uttering  these 
addresses?  It  is  very  diflBcult  to  say  for  sure,  for  the 
gospel  writers  do  not  portray  the  addresses  of  Jesus  as  a 
Greek  or  Roman  rhetorician  would  surely  have  done. 
They  say  next  to  nothing  about  his  manner.  Our  own 
answer  must  be  mainly  by  means  of  the  imagination. 

In  particular,  as  Jesus  spoke,  was  he  quiet?  impas- 
sioned? dignified?  enthusiastic?  self -forgetful?  sympa- 
thetic? sensitive  to  changes  in  his  audience?  choked  at 
times  with  emotion?   with  or  without  gestures?   with  or 


HIS  DISCOURSES  73 

without  flushed  countenance  and  flashing  eyes  as  he 
denounced  the  Pharisees?  tender?  winning?  with  a 
natural  tone  of  voice?  thrilling? 

How  else  would  you  describe  his  manner  of  presenting 
truth  in  discourse? 

Do  you  feel  it  improper  to  try  to  realize  the  very 
speaking  presence  of  Jesus  in  this  way?  If  so,  how  would 
you  account  for  this  feehng?    Would  you  justify  it? 

Turn  to  the  effects  of  his  discourses.  How  did  they 
affect  his  disciples?  the  multitudes  of  common  people? 
the  religious  leaders?  the  Nazareth  synagogue  congrega- 
tion? those  sent  by  the  Pharisees  to  take  him?  Why  did 
the  common  people  hear  him  gladly?  Why  did  his  would- 
be  captors  testify:  "Never  man  spake  like  this  man'*? 
(John  7:  46.)  Why  did  great  multitudes  follow  him 
after  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount?  What  so  amazed  and 
angered  the  Nazareth  group?  Why  were  the  Pharisees 
offended? 

Can  you  recall  still  other  effects  of  his  discourses? 

Jesus  once  said  to  the  disciples  who  had  asked  him  to 
explain  the  parable  of  the  sower:  "Know  ye  not  this 
parable?  and  how  shall  ye  know  all  parables?"  (Mark  4: 
13.)  Does  this  suggest  that  he  did  or  did  not  then  have 
in  mind  other  parables  to  speak?  What  does  this  sug- 
gest as  to  whether  Jesus  prepared  himself  in  advance  for 
some  of  his  discourses?  How  are  the  eighteen  silent  years 
related  to  this  question?  Undoubtedly  much  that  he  said 
was  uttered  spontaneously  out  of  a  full  soul.  Does  this 
apply  to  all  he  said?  Recall  his  promise  to  the  disciples 
that  in  the  hour  of  persecution  it  should  be  given  them 
what  to  say.     If  you  concluded  that  for  certain  of  his 


74  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

discourses  Jesus  had  prepared  himself  in  advance,  would 
that,  in  your  judgment,  detract  from  him  as  a  teacher? 

A  topic  for  investigation:  Did  Jesus  discourse  more  or 
converse  more?  Which  do  the  evangelists  report  more, 
his  conversations  or  his  sermons? 

We  are  near  the  end  of  our  review  of  this  most  fertile 
field  of  study.  Finally,  then,  what  may  we  learn  from 
Jesus  about  discourse,  lecture,  or  sermon?  Write  down 
as  many  answers  as  you  can  to  this  question.  Look 
through  the  preceding  material  again  with  this  thought 
in  mind.  If  we,  according  to  our  poor  ability,  would 
imitate  the  Master  Teacher  in  public  address,  what 
should  we  do? 

What  would  be  our  preparation? 

In  what  places  would  we  be  willing  to  speak? 

Before  what  groups? 

Under  what  circumstances? 

Upon  what  great  themes  would  we  speak?  Would 
these  themes  be  problems  near  to  or  remote  from  the 
lives  of  those  addressed? 

Would  we  repeat  the  old  or  herald  the  new? 

In  what  manner  would  we  speak? 

Would  we  be  rather  prophets  or  priests? 

Would  we  trim  the  truth  to  suit? 

Would  we  at  times  antagonize? 

Would  we  "cry  aloud  and  spare  not"? 

WTiat  else? 

At  the  conclusion  of  one  of  these  studies  do  you  get  the 
same  impression  as  the  author  that  there  is  a  great  deal 
more  in  these  topics  than  we  had  thought  in  advance, 
and  also  a  great  deal  more  than  we  have  thought  yet? 


HIS  DISCOURSES  75 

Finally,  thinking  back  over  the  past  three  chapters, 
did  Jesus  prefer  to  ask  questions,  to  answer  questions,  or 
to  use  the  discourse?  How  can  we  tell?  Judging  by  the 
following  quotation,  what  would  Stanley  Hall  say? 

"As  one  who  loved  to  sharpen  wits  by  dialogue  and 
discussion  in  the  sense  in  which  Plato  commends  this 
method  of  investigation,  and  took  pleasure  in  discourse 
with  strangers,  both  men  and  women,  although  he  pre- 
ferred as  a  teacher  to  communicate  his  own  and  God's 
truth,  he  still  took  a  true  and  pedagogic  pleasure  in 
answering  questions  and  meeting  objections. "^ 

Do  you  agree  with  this  view? 


2  G.  S.  HaU,  "Jesus,  the  Christ,  in  the  Light  of  Psychology,"  Vol.  II,  p.  423. 


CHAPTER  XI 
HIS  PARABLES 

One  of  the  most  outstanding  features  of  the  method  of 
Jesus  as  teacher  is  that  he  told  stories.  We  call  his 
stories  parables,  though  some  of  his  sayings  regarded  as 
parables  are  not  exactly  stories,  but  rather  short  com- 
parisons, as  "A  city  set  on  a  hill  cannot  be  hid"  (Matt. 
5:  14).  There  are  some  twenty-eight  of  these  short  com- 
parisons and  perhaps  twenty-five  different  stories.  About 
one  fourth  of  all  the  spoken  words  of  Jesus  recorded  by 
Mark  are  parables  in  this  double  sense  of  the  term,  and 
in  Luke  nearly  half.  The  proportion  is  largest  in  Luke. 
The  term  "parable"  occurs  some  fifty  times  in  the  New 
Testament. 

Some  things  to  do: 

Read  the  four  gospels  and  make  a  list  of  all  the  short 
comparisons  you  can  find. 

Make  another  list  of  the  stories. 

When  you  have  done  this,  if  you  read  German,  turn  to 
Jtilicher,  *'Die  Gleichnisreden  Jesu^^  and  compare  your 
lists  with  his. 

If  you  don't  read  German,  turn  to  Stanley  Hall  (who 
follows  Julicher),  "Jesus,  the  Christ,  in  the  Light  of 
Psychology,"  p.  517,  and  do  the  same. 

What  proportion  of  Matthew  is  occupied  by  parables? 

What  do  you  find  peculiar  about  the  form  of  the 
parable  in  John? 

76 


From  a  Perry  Picture 

PARABLE  OF  THE 


From  painting  by  Millais 
LOST    PIECE    OF   MONEY 


HIS  PARABLES  77 

Why  do  you  suppose  Luke  was  so  attracted  by  the 
parables? 

What  is  the  nature  of  a  parable? 

A  parable  is  a  comparison  between  familiar  facts  and 
spiritual  truths.  This  comparison  may  be  short  and 
pithy,  like  "If  the  blind  lead  the  blind,  both  shall  fall 
into  the  ditch"  (Matt.  15: 14),  or  it  may  be  worked  out 
in  a  story.  If  worked  out  in  story  form,  the  story  may 
say  one  thing  and  mean  another,  as  the  story  of  the  lost 
sheep  found  by  the  good  shepherd,  meaning  lost  man 
found  by  the  Savior  (Luke  15:3-7).  This  is  the  true 
form  of  the  parable,  or  the  story  may  embody  in  itself 
the  truth  taught,  without  referring  to  another  realm  be- 
yond itself,  as  the  story  of  the  Good  Samaritan  (Luke 
10:  25-37).  This  form  of  the  parable  may  be  called  an 
illustrative  story.  There  is  still  a  third  form  which  the 
story  may  take.  It  is  one  in  which  the  story  and  its 
meaning  do  not  run  parallel,  like  a  man  and  his  shadow, 
but  the  two  are  interwoven  with  each  other,  as  in  the 
story  of  the  Good  Shepherd  (John  10: 1-21). 

In  summary: 

1.  Short  comparisons,  like  the  three- word  shortest  par- 
able: "Physician,  heal  thyself"  (Luke  4:  23). 

2.  A  story  suggesting  a  comparison  between  familiar 
facts  and  spiritual  truths,  like  the  story  of  the  tares  in 
the  wheat.  This  is  what  people  usually  mean  by  a  par- 
able. Jesus  told  the  story,  but  not  its  meaning,  unless 
asked  to  do  so  privately  by  his  disciples.  It  is  this  kind 
of  parable  which  is  familiarly  referred  to  as  "an  earthly 
story  with  a  heavenly  meaning." 

3.  An  illustrative  story  carrying  the  truth  within  itself. 


78  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

not  above  itself,  like  the  Pharisee  and  publican  praying 
in  the  temple.  One  might  call  it  a  single-story  story,  not 
a  double-story  story,  as  the  group  above. 

4.  Allegory,  in  which  the  spiritual  meaning  of  the 
story  is  woven  into  the  telling  of  the  story,  as  in  the 
Vine  and  the  Branches  (John  15).  Recall  the  question 
raised  above  as  to  the  peculiar  form  the  parable  takes  in 
John's  gospel.    Can  you  think  of  any  explanation  for  this? 

Now  take  your  earlier  list  of  the  stories  told  by  Jesus, 
and  try  to  decide  in  the  case  of  each  story  whether  it  is  a 
true  parable,  or  an  illustrative  story,  or  an  allegory. 

Which  of  the  three  groups  is  the  largest  .f^ 

In  order  to  show  very  clearly  the  distinction  between  a 
true  parable  and  an  allegory,  let  me  undertake  the  ven- 
turesome task  of  making  a  true  parable  based  on  the 
allegory  of  the  Vine  and  the  Branches. 

First,  read  attentively  John  15 : 1-10. 

Then  read  the  following,  which  tries  to  separate  out  of 
the  allegory  the  meaning  from  the  story: 

The  Kingdom  of  Heaven  is  like  unto  a  thrifty-looking 
vine  planted  by  a  vine-dresser,  which  turned  out  to  be 
the  wild  plant  of  a  strange  vine,  and  failed  to  bring  forth 
fruit.  Then  he  planted  a  true  vine,  and  cut  away  the 
branches  that  bore  no  fruit,  and  cast  them  forth,  and  they 
withered,  and  were  gathered,  and  cast  into  the  fire,  and 
burned.  But  he  pruned  with  his  pruning-hook  the  fruitful 
branches  remaining  in  the  vine,  that  they  might  bear 
more  fruit,  and  their  fruit  ripened,  and  gave  joy  to  the 
vine-dresser. 

And  when  he  had  ended,  Simon  Peter  said  unto  him: 
"Master,  declare  unto  us  the  parable." 

And  he  said:  Israel  is  the  false  vine,  I  am  the  true 
vine,  and  my  Father  is  the  vine-dresser.     The  word  is 


HIS  PARABLES  79 

the  pruning-hook,  and  ye  are  the  branches — some  fruit- 
less, to  be  destroyed,  because  not  continuing  in  me,  and 
some  fruitful,  to  be  saved,  because  continuing  in  me. 
Abide  in  me,  and  I  will  abide  in  you. 

What  do  you  think  of  it? 

What  type  of  mind  would  prefer  the  allegory  to  the 
parable? 

Why  not  attempt  the  same  with  John  10: 1-5,  and 
with  John  6:  30-40? 

Since  the  teacher  is  concerned  with  the  ejffects  of  his 
teaching  on  the  minds  of  his  pupils,  let  us  ask,  What  are 
the  mental  effects  of  the  parable?  This  will  help  us  to 
understand  why  Jesus  made  such  large  use  of  it 

Try  this  experiment:  Select  one  of  the  parables  with 
which  you  are  least  familiar,  get  some  one  to  read  it 
aloud  to  you,  and  note  carefully  the  mental  effects  upon 
yourseK.  Or,  you  may  select  a  friend  capable  of  intro- 
spection, and  do  the  same  with  him.  Or,  read  the  fol- 
lowing parable  carefully,  and  see  what  happens  in  your 
own  mind. 

A  certain  teacher,  noting  that  some  of  his  pupils  were 
not  making  use  of  their  opportunities,  told  his  class  this 
story: 

"Two  men  went  into  a  shop  of  fine  wares  to  buy.  And 
when  they  had  made  their  purchases,  the  dealer  wrapped 
their  parcels  and  laid  them  on  the  counter.  Whereupon, 
one  of  the  two  took  up  his  parcel  and  departed  to  his 
house,  but  the  other  left  his  parcel  lying  on  the  counter. 
And  the  dealer  said,  *See,  you  are  leaving  behind  the 
goods  you  purchased.'  But  he  replied,  'Oh  I  didn't 
mean  to  carry  them  away.    I  only  came  into  your  shop 


80  JESU&-THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

for  the  pleasure  of  being  with  my  companion,  seeing,  and 
buying,  but  not  caring  to  take  anything  away  with  me.' " 

Give  this  story  a  chance  at  you  first,  then  write  down 
some  of  its  mental  effects. 

Some  of  the  mental  effects  of  the  parable  are:  It  holds 
attention  through  interest;  it  presents  a  mental  challenge 
to  discover  the  meaning  (it  is  a  kind  of  puzzle  one 
wants  to  solve);  there  may  be  surprise  at  the  turn  the 
story  takes  (compare  the  stories  of  O.  Henry);  one's 
personal  pride  may  be  piqued;  it  may  release  effort  of 
will  if  a  personal  application  is  made;  and  it  is  an  aid  to 
memory.  It  may  give  offense  if  one  feels  that  there  is  an 
indirect  personal  thrust. 

Compare  now  your  list  of  effects  with  this  list. 

If  you  would  really  like  to  appreciate  a  parable,  stop 
at  this  point,  and  write  one  yourself.  This  is  proposed 
seriously,  why  not  try? 

Why  did  Jesus  use  parables? 

Before  reading  further,  turn  to  the  following  references, 
and  try  to  answer  the  question  for  yourself:  Matt.  13: 
10-18;  Matt.  13:  34,  35;  Mark  4: 10-12;  Mark  4:  33,  34; 
and  Luke  8:  9,  10. 

Now  recall  that  the  parables  or  "dark  sayings"  were 
spoken  to  a  mixed  company  of  enemies  and  friends,  of 
persons  typified  by  each  of  the  four  kinds  of  soil,  and 
that  they  were  explained  privately  to  the  disciples.  They 
were  spoken  primarily  to  the  indifferent  and  hostile  pub- 
lic, but  their  spiritual  meaning  was  interpreted  only  to 
earnest  inquirers. 

Why,  then,  were  the  parables  used?    To  conceal  truth 


HIS  PARABLES  81 

from  the  unreceptive  and  to  reveal  truth  to  the  receptive 
The  parable  was  a  way  of  separating  the  sheep  from  the 
goats.  It  was  the  method  whereby  Jesus  followed  his 
own  injunction,  and  did  not  cast  that  which  was  holy 
to  the  dogs,  nor  his  pearls  before  swine.  Had  he  done 
so,  they  would  have  trampled  them  under  foot  (i.  e., 
rejected  his  plain  teaching)  and  turned  again  and  rent 
him  (i.  e.,  attacked  the  new  prophet)  sooner  than  they 
finally  did.  The  parable  was  the  word  which  would  judge 
them  at  the  last  day,  showing  them  not  to  belong  to  the 
understanding  kind.  In  repeating  the  injunction:  "He 
that  hath  ears  to  ear,  let  him  hear,"  the  line  of  distinction 
is  being  drawn  between  those  with  and  without  the  hear- 
ing ear.  So  that  the  result  was,  as  the  prophet  had  said, 
for  all  their  seeing  they  did  not  perceive,  and  for  all  their 
hearing  they  did  not  understand,  and  so  did  not  turn 
and  receive  forgiveness  (Matt.  13: 14,  15). 

So  Stanley  Hall  refers  to  the  parables  as  "Binet  tests  of 
spiritual  insight."  "Thus  for  genetic  rehgious  psychology 
they  serve  as  moron-finders."^ 

Very  likely  there  are  other  reasons  also  why  Jesus  used 
the  parable.  He  adopted  this  method  rather  suddenly 
in  the  midst  of  his  public  ministry  when  the  tide  of  op- 
position was  rising  against  him,  perhaps  as  a  mode  of 
self-protection  in  his  teaching,  enabling  him  to  survive 
until  his  time  should  come.  Besides,  the  story  is  the 
common  Oriental  method  of  imparting  truth,  and  the 
Old  Testament  prophets  (see,  for  example,  Ezekiel  17), 
as  well  as  the  later  Jewish  rabbis,  had  used  this  method 
though  without  the  perfection  of  form  displayed  by  Jesus. 

1  "Jesus,  the  Christ,  in  the  Light  of  Psychology,"  p.  522. 


82  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Can  you  think  of  still  other  reasons  why  Jesus  may 
have  used  the  parable? 

Stop  at  this  point  and  see  whether  you  are  a  "religious 
moron"  or  not.  State  the  latent  meaning  of  one  of  the 
more  diflScult  parables,  e.  g.,  equal  pay  for  unequal  work 
(Matt.  20: 1-16). 

How  did  the  disciples  themselves  pass  this  test  when 
they  first  heard  the  parables  of  the  Sower  and  the  Tares? 

Briefly  to  repeat  the  kinds  of  parables,  for  a  purpose: 

Not  all  the  sayings  of  Jesus  that  go  by  the  name  of 
"parables"  belong  in  the  same  class.  "Physician,  heal 
thyself,"  and  "If  the  blind  lead  the  blind,  both  shall  fall 
into  the  ditch,"  are  very  different  from  the  story  of  the 
lost  coin,  or  the  lost  sheep,  or  the  lost  son.  These  latter 
say  one  thing  and  mean  another;  they  say  something 
about  the  sense  world  and  mean  something  about  the 
spiritual  world.  Both  of  these  differ  from  the  Good 
Samaritan  or  the  Pharisee  and  the  publican,  which  com- 
bine the  spiritual  and  material  worlds  in  one  story.  There 
is  no  parallelism,  but  the  virtue  is  embodied  in  the  story 
itself. 

All  three  of  these  differ  from  the  Good  Shepherd,  in 
which,  as  we  have  seen,  the  story  and  the  meaning  are 
closely  interwoven,  and  the  story  is  subordinate  to  the 
meaning  in  the  telling.  Perhaps  this  last  should  not  be 
called  a  parable  at  all,  but  an  allegory.  What  allegory 
did  John  Bunyan  write? 

The  first  kind  of  parables  might  be  called  proverbs, 
maxims,  or  aphorisms.  The  second  class  are  properly 
called  parables,  because  they  convey  a  moral  or  religious 
truth  in  short-story  form.     The  third  are  illustrative 


HIS  PARABLES  83 

stories.    And  then,  in  the  fourth  place,  we  have  the  form 
that  the  parables  take  in  John's  gospel — the  allegory. 

Given  these  four  headings,  how  would  you  classify; 

"Ye  cannot  serve  two  masters." 

"Take  the  lowest  seat." 

The  Widow  and  the  Unjust  Judge. 

The  Ten  Virgms. 

The  Tares  and  the  Wheat. 

The  Foolish  Rich  Man. 

Dives  and  Lazarus. 

The  Vine  and  the  Branches. 

The  Bread  of  Life. 

If  you  want  an  engaging  hunt,  classify  all  the  sayings 
of  Jesus  you  can  find  that  belong  under  some  one  of  the 
first  three  heads.  There  will  be  between  fifty  and  seventy- 
five  of  them. 

Now  compare  your  findings  with  those  of  Julicher 
("Die  Gleichnisreden  Jesu")y  followed  by  Hall  ("Jesus,  the 
Christ,  in  the  Light  of  Psychology,"  p.  517). 

But  there  is  a  yet  more  interesting  mode  of  approach 
to  the  parables,  because  throwing  more  light  upon  the 
range  and  quality  of  the  thinking  of  Jesus.  Suppose  we 
classify  the  parables  according  to  the  sphere  from  which 
they  are  drawn,  whether  things,  plants,  animals,  or  men. 
Some  will  be  difficult  to  classify  according  to  this  prin- 
ciple, e.  g.,  the  drag-net  with  the  fish,  the  sower  with  the 
seed  and  the  soils,  the  lost  coin  with  the  woman  seeking. 

What  we  find  on  this  basis  is  something  like  the  fol- 
lowing: 

Things 

The  Salt  of  the  Earth. 


84  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

The  Light  of  the  World. 

The  City  Set  on  a  Hill. 

The  Light  on  a  Candlestick. 

Things  That  Defile. 

Things  Hidden  and  Revealed. 

The  Eye  as  the  Light  of  the  Body. 

The  New  Cloth  on  the  Old  Garment. 

The  New  Wine  in  the  Old  Bottles. 

The  House  Divided  against  Itself. 

The  Two  Houses  Built  on  Rock  and  Sand. 

The  Four  Soils. 

The  Drag-Net. 

The  Hid  Treasure. 

The  Pearl  of  Great  Price. 

The  Great  Supper. 

Plants 

The  Budding  Fig-Tree. 

The  Tree  "known  by  its  fruits." 

The  Barren  Fig-Tree. 

The  Seed  Growing  Independently. 

The  Mustard  Seed. 

The  Tares  and  the  Wheat. 

The  Leaven. 

Animals 

The  Carcass  and  the  Eagles. 

The  Children's  Meat  and  the  Dogs. 

The  Lost  Sheep. 

The  Sheep  and  the  Goats. 


HIS  PARABLES  85 

Human  Beings 
The  Woman  Seeking  the  Lost  Coin. 
The  Servants  Given  the  Talents. 
The  Servants  Given  the  Pounds. 
The  Unprofitable  Servants. 
Children  in  the  Market  Place. 
The  Son  Asking  for  a  Fish  or  an  Egg. 
The  Disciple  and  His  Lord. 
Blind  Leaders. 
The  Two  Masters. 

The  Scribe  Instructed  in  the  Kingdom. 
The  Thief  in  the  Night. 
The  Ten  Virgins. 
"Physician,  heal  thyself." 
The  Whole  Who  Need  No  Physician. 
No  Fasting  in  the  Bridegroom's  Presence. 
Counting  the  Cost  of  War  or  a  Tower. 
The  Adversary  in  the  Way. 
Guests  to  Take  the  Lowest  Seat. 
The  Neighbor  in  Need  of  a  Loaf. 
The  Widow  and  the  Unjust  Judge. 
The  Unmerciful  Servant. 
He  to  Whom  Much  and  Little  Is  Forgiven. 
The  Lost  Son. 

The  Two  Sons  Commanded  to  Work. 
The  Defiant  Tenants  of  the  Vineyard. 
The  Unwilling  Guests. 
The  Eleventh-Hour  Man. 
The  Good  Samaritan. 
The  Pharisee  and  the  Publican. 
The  Foolish  Rich  Man. 


86  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Dives  and  Lazarus. 

The  Unrighteous  Steward. 

The  Faithful  Steward. 

Servants  Looking  for  Their  Lord. 

Where  shall  we  put  the  parable  of  the  unclean  spirit 
wandering  in  desert  places.^ 

If  these  classifications  will  at  all  stand,  they  show  that 
of  a  total  of  sixty-one  different  parables,  sixteen  or  about 
twenty-six  per  cent  deal  with  the  inanimate  world  of 
things,  while  the  remaining  seventy-four  per  cent  deal 
with  the  animate  world  of  plants,  animals,  and  men.  Of 
these  last,  seven  or  about  eleven  and  one  half  per  cent 
of  the  total  deal  with  plants;  only  four,  or  some  seven 
per  cent,  deal  with  animals;  while  thirty-four,  or  over 
fifty-five  per  cent,  deal  with  human  relations. 

The  Parables  of  Jesus 

number  per  cent 

Things 16  26 

Plants 7  11.5 

Animals 4  7 

Human 34  55.5 

61  100 

Stop  here  and  consider  what  these  results  mean  for 
the  quality  and  range  of  the  thinking  of  Jesus. 

From  these  results  it  is  very  evident  that  the  thinking 
of  Jesus  centered  in  the  huma^n  world  rather  than  in  the 
world  of  animals,  plants,  and  things.  This  gives  a  hu- 
manistic rather  than  realistic  or  scientific  quality  to  his 
thinking.    It  is  also  clear  from  the  relatively  small  place 


HIS  PARABLES  87 

in  his  thinking  of  the  inanimate  world  of  things  that  his 
thinking  was  not  static  but  dynamic  in  quaUty.  The 
phenomena  of  growth  rather  than  Hfeless  material  espe- 
cially affected  his  thinking.  And  from  the  great  sweep 
of  his  illustrations  from  every  department  of  creation  it  is 
clear  that  Jesus  had  a  wide  circle  of  interests;  his  thinking 
was  comprehensive  and  not  hmited  in  range. 

As  pieces  of  literary  composition,  would  you  regard  the 
parables  as  works  of  art?  as  models  of  the  short-story 
form?  Of  course,  Jesus  only  spoke  them  without  writing 
them  down,  but  he  spoke  them  in  such  a  way  that  they 
were  easily  remembered.  Besides,  he  may  have  thought 
some  of  them  out  carefully  in  advance.  Does  not  his 
question,  already  referred  to,  when  the  disciples  asked 
him  the  meaning  of  the  parable  of  the  sower,  perhaps 
his  first  parable:  "Know  ye  not  this  parable?  And  how 
shall  ye  know  all  the  parables?"  indicate  that  he  had 
some  parables  in  mind  which  were  not  yet  spoken? 

Now  any  work  of  art  embodies  the  ideal  in  some  pleas- 
ing form  of  the  real.  The  parable  suggests  the  poetry  of 
heaven  by  the  prose  of  earth.  It  conveys  a  spiritual 
meaning  by  the  aid  of  an  earthly  story.  And  this  it  does 
in  a  form  pleasing  to  the  imagination.  It  is  proper,  then, 
to  regard  the  parable  as  a  work  of  art.  By  the  canons  of 
literary  criticism,  the  parable  of  the  Prodigal  Son  is  the 
world's  greatest  short  story. 

In  what  consists  the  beauty  of  the  parable?  Among 
the  most  beautiful  of  the  parables  are:  The  Lost  Sheep, 
The  Lost  Son,  The  Hidden  Treasure,  and  The  Pearl  of 
Great  Price.  Reread  these  at  this  point  just  to  enjoy 
their  beauty.    Can  you  find  them?    If  not,  use  the  con- 


88  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

cordance.  You  will  notice  that  the  first  two  of  these 
are  parables  of  compassion,  the  other  two  are  parables 
of  value.    Can  you  feel  their  beauty? 

Now  what  are  the  elements  of  the  parable  that  stir 
the  esthetic  sense  within  us,  like  a  lovely  lyric  or  a  rare 
sunset,  or  a  beautiful  face?  It  is  more  important  that  you 
should  feel  the  beauty  of  the  parable  than  that  you  should 
understand  it.  In  fact,  perhaps  the  full  understanding  of 
it  is  not  accessible  to  us. 

Among  the  elements  of  beauty  in  the  parable  are 
economy  of  expression,  not  a  word  too  many;  and  appeal 
to  the  imagination,  giving  us  something  to  see  with  the 
mind's  eye,  or  hear  with  the  mind's  ear.  Thus  emotions 
of  awe  and  sublimity  are  awakened,  as  we  envisage  that 
house  on  the  sand  wrecked  by  the  storm.  There  are 
simplicity  and  ease  of  understanding  in  the  familiar  part 
of  the  parable,  and  there  are  profundity  and  suggestive- 
ness  in  its  recondite  meaning.  There  are  harmony  be- 
tween the  parts,  proportion,  and  grace,  the  whole  being 
a  unity  composed  of  reh  ted  parts.  There  are  appro- 
priateness to  the  occasion  and  adaptation  to  the  needs 
of  men.  The  parable  is  a  neat  tool,  whether  it  is  revealing 
truth  to  friends  or  concealing  truth  from  enemies.  It  has 
the  beauty  of  truth — truth  to  nature  and  to  human 
nature  in  its  divine  aspects.  In  short,  like  any  work  of 
art,  the  parable  is  the  union  of  the  real  and  the  ideal,  the 
material  real  with  the  spiritual  ideal.  And  the  union  is 
so  full  and  flawless  that  we  call  it  beautiful. 

Could  you  illustrate  each  of  these  elements  in  the 
beauty  of  a  parable?  Do  you  feel  their  truth?  Once 
again  read  the  following: 


HIS  PARABLES  89 

"Again  the  Kingdom  of  the  Heavens  is  like  a  jewel 
merchant  who  is  in  quest  of  choice  pearls.  He  finds  one 
most  costly  pearl;  he  goes  away;  and  though  it  costs  all 
he  has,  he  buys  it"  (Weymouth).     Is  it  not  a  gem  itself.? 

The  parable  may  be  regarded  as  the  analogue  of  the 
miracle.  This  would  mean  that  the  parable  and  the 
miracle  are  both  alike  and  unlike.  Stop  a  minute  and 
see  whether  you  can  find  similarity  as  well  as  dissimi- 
larity between  the  two. 

How  would  it  do  to  say  that  both  the  parable  and  the 
miracle  show  the  supremacy  of  the  spiritual,  but  the 
parable  shows  it  in  the  region  of  thought,  and  the  mir- 
acle in  the  region  of  action.'^  In  the  one  case  Jesus  was 
expressing  his  thought,  in  the  other  his  power. 

In  this  connection  recall  the  unusual  miracle  of  cursing 
the  barren  fig-tree — unusual  because  it  is  the  only  in- 
stance of  Jesus'  cursing  an  irresponsible  thing.  Can  we 
suppose  that  this  miracle  was  really  intended  as  a  parable, 
that  is,  as  a  condemnation  of  the  unfruitful  Pharisees.'^ 
If  so,  in  this  instance,  instead  of  speaking  the  word  of  the 
parable,  Jesus  performed  the  deed,  to  suggest  spiritual 
truth.  If  this  interpretation  is  acceptable,  then  this  in- 
cident reveals  the  close  connection  of  the  parable  and  the 
miracle.  In  another  connection  we  should  study  the  use 
Jesus  made  of  the  miracle  in  his  teaching;  only  a  hint  of 
it  is  given  here. 

The  parables  of  Jesus  suggest  to  us  very  interestingly 
something  of  his  philosophy  of  life.  By  the  phrase 
"philosophy  of  life"  we  mean  one's  general  view  of  the 
world  and  its  etfect  on  conduct;  or,  we  might  convert 
the  order  of  these  terms  and  say  we  mean  one's  conduct 


90  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

and  its  effect  on  his  general  view  of  the  world.  Can  you 
figure  out  what  is  coming?    Try  to  do  so. 

Jesus  saw  analogies,  comparisons,  resemblances  every- 
where between  the  realm  of  matter  and  the  realm  of 
spirit.  Thus  there  were  two  worlds,  but  they  were  re- 
lated to  each  other.  The  first  was  a  type  or  symbol  of 
the  second.  It  was  less  real  than  the  other.  It  would 
pass  away,  but  the  other  would  not  ("Heaven  and  earth 
shall  pass  away,  but  my  words  shall  not  pass  away"). 
There  is  duality  of  materiality  and  spirituality,  yet  an 
analogical  unity.  Nature  is  a  parable  of  Heaven,  it 
means  more  than  it  says.  The  relations  of  man  to  his 
world  symboHze  the  unseen  relations  of  God  to  his  chil- 
dren. This  latter  is  the  true  and  real  world,  existing 
now  within  the  heart,  and  to  abide  forever.  There  is 
nothing  here  of  the  logical  and  intellectual  interpreta- 
tions of  Plato,  unless  it  be  in  his  tales  and  myths 
(cf.  The  Tale  of  Er,  at  the  end  of  the  Republic),  but 
rather  the  moral  and  the  symbolic.  Is  it  characteris- 
tic of  the  Greek  genius  to  be  intellectual  and  of  the  He- 
brew genius  to  be  pragmatic  .^^ 

No  doubt  you  have  been  wondering  whether  Jesus 
originated,  or  borrowed,  or  both  borrowed  and  adapted 
the  parable.    Read  the  following: 

"And  the  word  of  Jehovah  came  unto  me,  saying, 
Son  of  man,  set  thy  face  toward  the  south,  and  drop  thy 
word  toward  the  south,  and  prophesy  against  the  forest 
of  the  field  in  the  South;  and  say  to  the  forest  of  the 
South,  Hear  the  word  of  Jehovah:  Thus  saith  the  Lord 
Jehovah,  Behold,  I  will  kindle  a  fire  in  thee,  and  it  shall 
devour  every  green  tree  in  thee,  and  every  dry  tree: 


HIS  PARABLES  91 

the  flaming  flame  shall  not  be  quenched,  and  all  faces 
from  the  south  to  the  north  shall  be  burnt  thereby.  And 
all  flesh  shall  see  that  I  Jehovah  have  kindled  it;  it  shalj 
not  be  quenched.  Then  said  I,  Ah  Lord  Jehovah!  they 
say  of  me.  Is  he  not  a  speaker  of  parables?"  (Ezek.  20; 
45-49.) 

Ezekiel  means  that  Jehovah  will  use  the  Babylonians 
to  destroy  utterly  southern  Judea  and  its  capital  Jeru- 
salem,  as  explained  plainly  in  the  following  chapter. 
There  are  many  such  parables  in  Ezekiel  and  in  other 
Old  Testament  writers,  as  well  as  fables,  riddles,  alle- 
gories, proverbs,  and  the  hke.  For  beautiful  parables, 
see  II  Sam.  12:  1-9,  and  14:  1-13.  Jesus  knew  three 
books — the  Old  Testament,  the  book  of  nature,  and  the 
book  of  life.  He  found  parables  in  the  Old  Testament, 
and  he  originated  parables  of  nature  and  of  life  to  set 
forth  the  new  message  of  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.  Be- 
sides, everybody  in  the  Orient  tells  stories.  In  sum,  we 
may  answer  our  question  by  saying  that  Jesus  found, 
adopted,  adapted,  and  perfected  the  parable. 

This  study  of  the  parables  could  be  considerably  pro- 
longed, for  the  subject  is  rich,  and  books  have  been 
written  on  it.  But,  for  our  purpose,  we  must  conclude 
now  with  a  few  practical  suggestions. 

It  is  clear  that  the  art  of  story-telling  should  be  a  part 
of  the  teacher's  repertory.  He  should  know  what  the 
four  parts  of  a  story  are,  should  be  able  to  discern  these 
four  parts  in  the  parable,  should  exemplify  them  in  the 
stories  he  writes  or  tells,  and  should  know  how  to  tell 
stories  to  a  company .^ 

2  On  these  points  consult  the  author's  "Story-Telling,  Questioning,  and  Study* 
ing,"  N.  Y,,  1916. 


92  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

In  order  to  see  how  a  story-teller  retells  the  parables, 
see  the  volume  by  Dean  Hodges,  "When  the  King  Came," 
pp.  166-175,  and  240-267. 

In  a  book  of  synonyms  or  in  an  unabridged  dictionary, 
find  out  the  difference  between  parable,  allegory,  simile, 
fiction,  fable,  illustration,  and  metaphor. 

You  should  also  determine  your  favorite  parable  as 
well  as  discover  the  favorite  parables  of  the  group. 

And  since  the  meaning  of  the  parable  is  its  essential 
part,  you  should  state  for  yourself  the  meaning  of  each 
of  the  parables.  For  example,  in  the  parable  of  the 
Tares,  who  sows  the  good  seed.'^  what  is  the  field  .f*  what 
are  the  good  seed.'^  what  are  the  tares?  who  sows  these .^^ 
what  is  the  harvest?  who  are  the  reapers?  what  is  the 
burning  of  the  tares?  what  is  the  gathering  of  the  wheat? 
Jesus  himself  answers  all  these  questions  in  explaining 
the  parable  to  the  disciples  (Matt.  13:  36-43). 

Did  Jesus  intend  all  the  parables  to  be  interpreted  in 
such  detail?  For  example,  should  we  try  to  say  what 
the  two  pence  are  that  the  Good  Samaritan  gave  to  the 
inn-keeper? 

In  following  up  the  study  of  the  parables,  the  following 
references  will  be  useful: 

Articles  in  Hastings'  "Dictionary  of  the  Bible"  and 
Hastings'  "Dictionary  of  Christ  and  the  Gospels." 

Bruce,  C.  B.,  "The  Parabolic  Teaching  of  Christ," 
London,  1882. 

Goebel,  S.,  "The  Parables  of  Jesus,"  Edinburgh,  1883. 

Winterbotham,  R.,  "The  Kingdom  of  Heaven,"  1898. 

Any  commentary  on  the  gospels  or  any  life  of  Christ. 

Mabie,  Hamilton  Wright,  "Parables  of  Life,"  1903. 


CHAPTER  Xn 
HIS  USE  OF  THE  SCRIPTURES 

Did  Jesus  know  and  use  the  Scriptures?  What  scrip- 
tures? 

Did  he  know  and  use  any  scriptures  not  in  our  Old 
Testament? 

How  did  the  Jews  entitle  their  scriptures? 

What  is  the  Apocrypha? 

Why  as  a  rabbi  would  Jesus  use  the  Jewish  scriptures? 

How  is  your  answer  related  to  the  principle  of  apper- 
ception? 

Make  a  list  of  direct  quotations  from  the  Old  Testa- 
ment that  Jesus  used. 

This  can  easily  be  done  by  using  a  New  Testament 
with  references,  or  the  article  on  "Quotations"  in  Hast- 
ings' "Dictionary  of  the  Bible,"  or  "Dictionary  of  Christ 
and  the  Gospels." 

Omitting  duplicates,  how  many  direct  quotations  do 
you  find? 

Why  is  it  that  some  of  the  quotations  do  not  seem  to 
be  exact?    Look  up  "Septuagint." 

Compare  your  list  with  the  following : 

1.  "Man  shall  not  Hve  by  bread  alone,  but  by  every 
word  that  proceedeth  out  of  the  mouth  of  God"  (Matt. 
4:4;Deut.  8:3). 

2.  "Thou  shalt  not  make  trial  of  the  Lord  thy  God" 
(Matt.4:7;Deut.  6:16). 

93 


94  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

3.  "Thou  shalt  worship  the  Lord  thy  God  and  him 
only  shalt  thou  serve"  (Matt.  4: 10;  Deut.  6: 13). 

4.  "Thou  shalt  not  kill"  (Matt.  5:21;  Exodus  20:13; 
Deut.  5:17). 

5.  "Thou  shalt  not  commit  adultery"  (Matt.  5:27; 
Exodus  20: 14;  Deut.  5: 18). 

6.  "Whosoever  shall  put  away  his  wife,  let  him  give 
her  a  writing  of  divorcement"  (Matt.  5:31;  Deut.  24: 
1,3). 

7.  "Thou  shalt  not  forswear  thyself"  (Matt.  5:33; 
Lev.  19: 12;  Num.  30:  2;  Deut.  23:  21). 

8.  "An  eye  for  an  eye  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth"  (Matt. 
5:  38;  Exodus  21:  24;  Lev.  24:  20;  Deut.  19:  21). 

9.  "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  and  hate  thine 
enemy"  (Matt.  5:  43;  Lev.  19: 18). 

10.  "I  desire  mercy  and  not  sacrifice"  (Matt.  9: 13, 
12:7;Hos.  6:6). 

11.  "Behold  I  send  my  messenger  before  thy  face" 
(Matt.  11: 10;  Mai.  3:1). 

12.  "By  hearing  ye  shall  hear,  and  shall  in  no  wise 
understand"  (Matt.  13: 14,  15;  Isa.  6:  9,  10). 

13.  "Honor  thy  father  and  thy  mother"  (Matt.  15:4: 
Exodus  20: 12;  Deut.  5:  16). 

14.  "He  that  speaketh  evil  of  father  or  mother,  let 
him  die  the  death"  (Matt.  15:4;  Exodus  21:17;  Lev. 
20:9). 

15.  "This  people  honoreth  me  with  their  lips,"  etc. 
(Matt.  15:8,  9;  Isa.  29:13). 

16.  "He  who  made  them  from  the  beginning  made 
them  male  and  female"  (Matt.  19:  4;  Gen.  1:  27,  5:  2). 

17.  "For  this  cause  shall  a  man  leave  his  father  and 


HIS  USE  OF  THE  SCRIPTURES  95 

mother,  and  shall  cleave  to  his  wife"  (Matt.  19:  5;  Gen. 
2:24). 

18.  "Thou  shalt  not  kill,  Thou  shalt  not  commit 
adultery.  Thou  shalt  not  steal.  Thou  shalt  not  bear  false 
witness,  Honor  thy  father  and  thy  mother;  and.  Thou 
shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself"  (Matt.  19:18,  19; 
Exodus  20:  12-16;  Deut.  5: 16-20). 

19.  "Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and  sucklings  thou 
hast  perfected  praise"  (Matt.  21: 16;  Psalm  8:  2). 

20.  "The  stone  which  the  builders  rejected. 

The  same  was  made  the  head  of  the  corner" 

(Matt.  21:  42;  Psalm  118:  22). 

21.  "My  house  shall  be  called  a  house  of  prayer:  but 
ye  make  it  a  den  of  robbers"  (Matt.  21: 13;  Isa.  56:  7; 
Jer.  7: 11). 

22.  "I  am  the  God  of  Abraham,  and  the  God  of  Isaac, 
and  the  God  of  Jacob"  (Matt.  22:  32;  Exodus  3:  6). 

23.  "Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy 
heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind" 
(Matt.  22:37;  Deut.  6:5). 

24.  "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself"  (Matt. 
22:39;  Lev.  19:18). 

25.  "The  Lord  said  unto  my  Lord, 

Sit  thou  on  my  right  hand. 
Till  I  put  thine  enemies  underneath  thy  feet" 
(Matt.  22:44;  Psalm  110: 1). 

26.  "I  will  smite  the  shepherd,  and  the  sheep  of  the 
flock  shall  be  scattered  abroad"  (Matt.  26:31;  Zech. 
13:7). 

27.  "Eli,  EH,  lama,  sabachthani"  (Matt.  27:46;  Psalm 
22: 1). 


96  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

28.  "And  he  was  reckoned  with  transgressors'*  (Luke 
22:37;  Isa.  53:12). 

29.  .  .  .  "into  thy  hands  I  commend  my  spirit"  (Luke 
23:46;  Psalm  31:5). 

30.  "The  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me,"  etc.  (Luke  4: 
18;  Isa.  61:1,  2). 

31.  "I  said,  ye  are  gods"  (John  10:  34;  Psalm  82:  6). 

32.  "He  that  eateth  my  bread  lifted  up  his  heel  against 
me"  (John  13: 18;  Psalm  41:  9). 

33.  "They  hated  me  without  a  cause"  (John  15:25; 
Psalm  35: 19;  Psalm  69:  4). 

This  list  is  not  complete. 

What  impression  do  you  get  as  to  the  familiarity  of 
Jesus  with  the  letter  of  Scripture? 

From  what  portions  of  the  Scriptures  does  he  quote 
most.^ 

Upon  what  occasions  in  his  life  does  he  draw  upon 
Scripture.?  For  example,  the  Temptation?  the  first  ser- 
mon in  Nazareth?  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount?  in  meeting 
criticism?  in  answering  questions?  in  asking  questions? 
in  his  relation  to  John?  in  his  explanation  of  the  use  of 
parables?  in  cleansing  the  Temple?  in  announcing  his 
death?  in  announcing  the  betrayal?  in  explaining  oppo- 
sition? on  the  cross? 

How  did  he  regard  his  own  teaching,  life,  and  death 
as  related  to  Scripture?    (See  John  5:  39,  40.) 

Is  it  likely  that  we  have  all  the  quotations  he  made 
from  Scripture? 

In  answering  a  question  like  this,  recall  that  scholars 
say  that  all  the  incidents  reported  in  the  gospels  fall  on 
only  thirty-five  different  days  throughout  a  period  of 


HIS  USE  OF  THE  SCRIPTURES  97 

some  three  years.  See  also  the  remarkable  last  verse  in 
the  gospel  of  John. 

Also  take  this  little  problem  in  arithmetic.  One  third 
of  the  gospel  of  John  is  devoted  to  one  week  in  the  life 
of  Christ.  Suppose  all  his  weeks  during  three  years  of 
public  ministry  had  been  equally  full  and  equally  fully 
reported,  how  many  gospels  the  length  of  John's  would 
have  been  necessary? 

Did  Jesus  ever  write  out  any  of  his  teaching  for  preser- 
vation?   Why  not? 

Upon  what  principle  did  some  of  his  words  survive? 

How  did  he  obtain  this  intimacy  with  Scripture? 
When? 

What  is  his  attitude  toward  Scripture  in  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount? 

Did  he  accept  it  as  final  authority? 

Continue  this  study  by  making  a  list  of  his  references 
and  allusions  to  the  Old  Testament  without  directly 
quoting  it.  This  can  be  done  by  reading  through  one 
gospel  with  this  thought  in  mind. 

What  will  such  a  list  show? 

Compare  your  list  with  the  following: 

1.  The  Persecution  of  the  Prophets,  Matt.  5: 12. 

2.  The  Gift  That  Moses  Commanded,  Matt.  8:  4. 

3.  Those  Who  Shall  Sit  Down  with  Abraham,  and 
Isaac,  and  Jacob  in  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven,  Matt.  8: 11. 

4.  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  in  the  Judgment,  Matt.  10: 
15. 

5.  "This  is  Elijah,"  Matt.  17: 12;  Matt.  11: 14. 

6.  A  Man's  Foes  (cf.  Mic.  7:6),  Matt.  10:  36. 

7.  What  David  Did,  Matt.  12:  3. 


98  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

8.  How  the  Priests  Profane  the  Sabbath,  Matt.  12:  5. 

9.  Jonah  and  Nineveh,  Matt.  12:  40,  41. 

10.  The  Queen  of  the  South,  Matt.  12:  42. 

11.  The  Blood  of  Abel,  Matt.  23:  35. 

12.  The  Days  of  Noah,  Matt.  24:  37. 

13.  The  Mourning  of  the  Tribes  of  the  Earth,Matt.24 :30. 

14.  The  Sign  of  the  Son  of  Man  in  Heaven,  Matt.  24: 30. 

15.  Sitting  at  the  Right  Hand  of  Power,  Matt.  26:  64. 

16.  The  Widows  in  Israel,  Luke  4:  25. 

17.  The  Lepers  in  Israel,  Luke  4:  27. 

18.  The  Days  of  Lot,  Luke  17:  28. 

19.  Lot's  Wife,  Luke  17:  32. 

20.  Searching  the  Scriptures,  John  5 :  39. 

21.  Moses  "wrote  of  me,"  John  5:  46. 

22.  The  Witness  of  Two  Men,  John  8: 17. 

23.  Ascending  and  Descending  Angels,  John  1:  51. 

24.  Lifting  Up  the  Serpent,  John  3: 14. 

25.  The  Bondservant  in  the  House,  John  8:  35. 

26.  The  Rejoicing  of  Abraham,  John  8:  5Q. 

You  can  easily  identify  these  Old  Testament  alli^^ions 
by  using  a  reference  Bible  on  the  passages  given.  This 
list  is  not  exhaustive. 

You  can  also  test  your  familiarity  with  the  Old  Testa- 
ment by  noting  how  many  you  need  to  look  up. 

How  do  you  think  your  knowledge  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment compares  with  that  which  Jesus  showed? 

What  do  these  allusions  show  as  to  the  ability  of  Jesus 
to  use  the  Old  Testament.?  Was  he  bound  by  its  letter.? 
He  evidently  used  its  incidents  freely  and  independently 
of  the  words  reporting  them. 

Yet  more.    There  are  some  references  by  Jesus  to  what 


HIS  USE  OF  THE  SCRIPTURES  99 

had  been  written  that  cannot  be  identified.     Do  you 
know  of  any? 

Here  is  a  partial  Hst: 

1.  "The  Son  of  man  goeth,  even  as  it  is  written  of 
him."    (Where?)    Matt.  26:24. 

2.  "How  then  should  the  scriptures  be  fulfilled,  that 
thus  it  must  be?"    (What  Scriptures?)    Matt.  26:  54. 

3.  "But  all  this  is  come  to  pass,  that  the  scriptures  of 
the  prophets  might  be  fulfilled."  (What  prophets?) 
Matt.  26:56. 

4.  "Elijah  is  come,  and  they  have  also  done  unto  him 
whatsoever  they  would,  even  as  it  is  written  of  him." 
(Where.?)    Mark  9: 13. 

5.  "Therefore  also  said  the  wisdom  of  God,  I  will  send 
unto  them  prophets  and  apostles."  (Where?  What  is 
"the  wisdom  of  God"?)    Luke  11 :  49. 

6.  "For  these  are  days  of  vengeance,  that  all  things 
which  are  written  may  be  fulfilled."  (What  things?) 
Luke  21:22. 

7.  "He  that  belie veth  on  me,  as  the  scripture  hath 
said,  from  within  him  shall  flow  rivers  of  living  water." 
John  7:  38.    (Cf.  Isa.  12:  3  and  Ezek.  47: 1.) 

8.  "Not  one  of  them  perished,  but  the  son  of  perdition; 
that  the  scripture  might  be  fulfilled."  (What  Scripture?) 
John  17: 12. 

There  are  other  passages  of  this  kind.  How  do  you 
explain  them? 

Was  Jesus  here  referring  to  the  general  tenor  and  spirit 
of  the  Scriptures? 

Is  it  conceivable  that  he  may  have  referred  to  what 
was  written  in  the  mind  of  God? 


100  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Did  Jesus  tend  to  regard  what  had  happened  as  the 
fulfilment  of  Scripture  even  when  specific  references  are 
lacking? 

Would  such  an  attitude  of  mind  make  the  endurance  of 
suffering  easier? 

These  questions  rather  reveal  our  ignorance  than  lead 
to  knowledge. 

However,  what  do  such  passages  indicate  as  to  the 
reliance  of  Jesus  on  Scripture?  as  to  the  way  in  which 
the  thought  of  Scripture  filled  his  mind? 

There  is  such  a  thing  as  knowing  Shakespeare  or  the 
Bible  so  well  that  one's  literary  or  spoken  style  uncon- 
sciously reflects  their  form  of  expression.  So  Webster, 
Lincoln,  and  Ruskin  knew  the  Bible. 

Is  it  possible,  similarly,  that  Jesus  may  have  used  Old 
Testament  forms  of  expression  naturally,  without  intend- 
ing to  quote? 

In  the  light  of  this  question  study  the  following  pairs  of 
quotations : 

1.  "Blessed  are  they  that  mourn,      "To  comfort   all    that  mourn.'* 

for  they  shall  be  comfort-  Isa.  61:  2. 

ed."  /Matt.  5:  4. 

2.  "Blessed   are   the    meek,   for      "The    meek    shall    inherit    the 

they      shall      inherit     the  earth."     Psalm  37;  11. 

earth."     Matt.  5:  5. 

3.  "Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart,      "He  that  hath  clean  hands  and 

for    they  shall    see   God."  a  pure  heart."     Psalm  24:  4. 

Matt.  5:  8. 

4.  "Neither  by  the  heaven,  for  it      "The  heaven  is  my  throne  and 

is  the  throne  of  God;  nor  by  the   earth    is    my    footstool." 

the  earth,  for  it  is  the  foot-  Isa.  66:  1. 

stool  of  his  feet."    Matt.  5: 
34,  35. 


mS  USE  OF  THE  SCRiPTimESi  ^(.1 

5.  "Seek,   and    ye   shall    find."      "If  thou   seek  him,   he   will   be 
Matt.  7:  7.  found  of  thee."   I  Chron.  28:  9. 

There  are  some  forty  similarly  parallel  passages. 

What  conclusion  do  you  draw? 

We  have  seen  quotations,  and  allusions,  and  similar 
literary  form  connecting  the  teaching  of  Jesus  with  the 
Scriptures. 

A  profounder  line  of  inquiry  would  be  to  ask  how  his 
thinking  is  related  to  Old  Testament  thinking. 

Are  the  matters  that  he  makes  fundamental  also  to  be 
found  in  the  Old  Testament?  God  as  father?  (See  Psalm 
103: 13.)  Love  of  God  and  neighbor?  The  Kingdom  of 
God?    (See  Dan.  2:  44;  7:  27.) 

With  this  thought  in  mind,  compare  the  following  pas- 
sages : 

"The  sabbath  was  made  for  man,       "Six    days    thou    shalt    do    thy 
and  not  man  for  the  sabbath."  work,  and  on  the  seventh  day 

Mark  2:  27.  thou  shalt  rest."    Exodus  23: 

12. 

"Except  one  be  born  of  water      "I  will  sprinkle  clean  water  upon 

and  the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  you,  and   ye   shall    be   clean 

into   the   kingdom   of    God."  .  .  .  and  a  new  spirit  will  I 

John  8:  5.  put  within  you."     Ezek.  36: 

25-27. 

But  is  there  any  real  Old  Testament  parallel  for  Matt. 
5:44:  "Love  your  enemies"?  Compare  Job  31:29,  30, 
Psalm  7:  4,  and  Exodus  23:  4. 

Still  another  question.  The  Jews  had  religious  writings 
which  do  not  appear  in  our  Old  Testament,  known  as  the 
Apocrypha.  Was  Jesus  acquainted  with  these  writings 
also? 


102  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Read  the  following  passages  and  decide  for  yourself: 
"Accustom  not  thy  mouth  to  an  oath; 
And  be  not  accustomed  to  the  naming  of  the  Holy 
One." 

Ecclesiasticus  2S:  9.     (Cf.  Matt.  5:  34,  35.) 
"Reject  not  a  suppliant  in  his  affliction; 
And  turn  not  away  thy  face  from  a  poor  man. 
Turn  not  away  thine  eye  from  one  that  asketh  of  thee. 
And  give  none  occasion  to  a  man  to  curse  thee." 

Ecclesiasticus  4:4,5.     (Cf .  Matt.  5 :  42.) 
"Lend  to  thy  neighbor  in  time  of  his  need; 
And  pay  thou  thy  neighbor  again  in  due  season." 
Ecclesiasticus  29 :  2.     (Cf .  Matt.  5 :  42.) 
"Forgive  thy  neighbor  the  hurt  that  he  hath  done 
thee; 
And   then  thy   sins   shall   be  pardoned   when  thou 
prayest." 

Ecclesiasticus  28:  2.     (Cf.  Matt.  6: 12,  14.) 
The  book  of  Ecclesiasticus  or  The  Wisdom  of  Jesus  the 
Son  of  Sirach  was  probably  written  100-50  B.  C.    It  re- 
sembles the  Proverbs,  is  probably  superior  to  Proverbs 
in  moral  quality,  and  may  be  read  with  edification. 

"But  thou  didst  teach  thy  people  by  such  works  as 
these. 
How  that  the  righteous  must  be  a  lover  of  men." 

The  Wisdom  of  Solomon,  c.  100  B.  C. 
"And  what  thou  thyself  hatest,  do  to  no  man." 

Tobit  4 :  15.     (Cf.  Matt.  7: 12.) 

Tobit,  like  Confucius,  gives  the  Golden  Rule  in  nega- 
tive form. 


HIS  USE  OF  THE  SCRIPTURES  103 

What  is  your  conclusion  as  to  whether  Jesus  knew  the 
Apocrypha? 

Jesus  does  not  quote  directly  from  the  Apocrypha  in 
what  has  come  down  to  us,  but  it  is  evident  his  thoughts 
are  similar. 

Should  we  then  study  the  Apocrypha?  (The  Apocrypha 
was  written  in  Greek  and  Latin.  A  revised  version  can 
be  had  from  the  Oxford  University  Press.  It  contains 
fourteen  books.  The  original  meaning  of  the  term  is 
"hidden."  In  the  second  century  the  meaning  changed 
to  "spurious."  The  titles  of  the  fourteen  books  are: 
I  and  II  Esdras,  Tobit,  Judith,  The  Remainder  of  Esther, 
The  Wisdom  of  Solomon,  Ecclesiasticus,  Baruch,  Song  of 
the  Three  Holy  Children,  History  of  Susanna,  Bel  and 
the  Dragon,  Prayer  of  Manasses,  and  I  and  II  Maccabees. 
These  books  are  accepted  as  canonical,  that  is,  "genuine 
and  inspired,"  by  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  but  are 
rejected  by  the  Jews  and  the  Protestant  churches.  Are 
writings  or  writers  inspired?  May  inspiration  be  received 
from  a  writing  not  accepted  as  "inspired"?) 

Let  us  turn  briefly  next  to  the  question  you  have  with- 
out doubt  been  raising  all  along,  as  we  have  been  con- 
sidering the  relation  of  Jesus  to  the  Scriptures  existent  in 
his  day,  namely,  in  what  consists  the  originality  of  Jesus? 

Original  he  was,  else  we  should  never  have  had  a 
"New"  Testament. 

How  do  you  answer  the  question? 

In  the  following  list  of  statements,  check  off  the  ones 
with  which  you  agree. 

Jesus  was  original  in  teaching  the  love  of  enemies. 

He  was  original  in  selection  and  emphasis,  that  is,  out 


104  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

of  a  mass  of  Old  Testament  views  he  selected  certain 
ones  for  primary  emphasis. 

He  was  original  in  clarifying,  amplifying,  and  applying 
the  views  selected.  (How  many  times  is  God  referred  to 
as  "Father"  in  Old  Testament,  and  in  the  New?) 

He  was  original  in  substituting  the  spirit  of  love  which 
fulfils  law  naturally  for  the  law  itself  and  its  letter. 

He  was  original  and  unique  in  living  what  he  taught. 

He  was  original  and  unique  in  his  personal  claim  to 
fulfil  Scripture,  to  be  the  Messiah.  Jesus'  becoming  and 
being  Christ  is  the  new  thing. 

He  is  original  in  the  universality  of  his  vision,  coupled 
with  the  individuality,  not  nationality,  of  his  appeal. 

He  is  original  as  is  an  artist  who  sits  in  the  presence  of 
the  greatest  of  his  predecessors,  assimilating  and  ab- 
sorbing until  he  comes  into  his  own  creative  self-expression. 

He  is  original  and  unique  in  being  a  racial  man,  that  is, 
realizing  the  moral  and  religious  capacities  of  the  race — 
"the  Son  of  Man." 

He  is  original  and  unique  in  his  unbroken  sense  of 
union  and  communion  with  God — "the  Son  of  God." 

With  which  statements  are  you  not  in  agreement.? 

What  statement  of  his  originality  would  you  add? 

What  other  religion  besides  Christianity  has  ever 
bound  up  with  its  own  sacred  writings  those  of  another 
religion?    WTiat  is  the  significance  of  this  fact? 

Summarizing  our  study  of  how  Jesus  used  Scripture, 
let  me  append  certain  statements  of  scholars.  Check  the 
ones  with  which  you  agree: 

"The  mind  of  Jesus  was  saturated  with  the  Book  of 
Isaiah." 


HIS  USE  OF  THE  SCRIPTURES  105 

"Jesus  was  an  authoritative  interpreter  of  the  Old 
Testament." 

"He  had  so  absorbed  the  Old  Testament  that  its  ideals 
were  his  commonplaces  of  thought." 

"Jesus  joined  the  work  which  he  did  as  closely  as  pos- 
sible to  that  of  the  Old  Testament  prophets,  using  their 
authority  for  his  teachings." 

"Jesus  was  also  a  Prophet  greater  than  any  that  had 
gone  before  him." 

"The  great  ideas  that  were  regulative  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment revelation  were  also  those  which  guided  the  prac- 
tice and  conduct  of  our  Lord"  (cf.  Matt.  3:  15). 

"The  body  of  his  teaching  is  everywhere  permeated  by 
Old  Testament  ideas  and  colored  by  Old  Testament 
language." 

"He  subjected  himself  to  its  spiritual  authority." 

"Jesus  recognized  the  process  of  evolution  that  took 
place  in  Old  Testament  revelation"  (cf.  his  setting 
aside  certain  precepts  of  the  law  and  his  reference  to 
Tyre  and  Sidon). 

"Jesus  used  the  Old  Testament  as  the  source  of  his 
own  spiritual  life." 

"The  Old  Testament  presents  to  our  souls  characters 
that  are  supremely  worthy  of  our  reverence  because 
consciously  centered  in  God  and  full  of  his  power.  It 
permits  us  to  share  the  enthusiasm  of  the  men  who  dis- 
covered the  fundamentals  of  our  religion  and  the  char- 
acter of  our  God.  It  is  indispensable  to  complete  dis- 
cipleship  of  Christ,  because  it  is  the  creator  of  the  mould 
which  his  soul  expanded." 

"Higher  values  than  these,  religiously,  there  are  not. 
No  man  save  Jesus  ever  had  the  right  to  lay  the  book 
that  offered  these  aside.    And  he  made  it  immortal."^ 

1  A.  W.  Vernon,  "The  Religious  Value  of  the  Old  Testament,"  1907,  pp.  80,  81. 


106  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Why  is  the  Old  Testament  "old"?     Who  made  it  so? 

Is  the  New  Testament  still  "new"?  W^ill  it  ever  become 
"old"? 

Some  final  practicalities: 

Jesus  used  the  Old  Testament  for  the  growth  of  his 
own  soul.    Do  we  need  it  for  the  same? 

He  also  used  it  as  the  common  meeting-ground  with 
the  religious  minds  of  his  day.  What  analogous  use 
should  we  make  of  it? 

What  should  be  the  attitude  of  Christianity  toward  the 
Jewish  religion  today?   of  Christians  toward  Jews? 

Wliat  should  be  the  attitude  of  the  missionary  toward 
the  religion  and  the  religious  writings  of  the  people  to 
whom  he  goes? 

Can  a  Christian  understand  the  mind  of  Christ  without 
understanding  Moses  and  Elijah,  the  law  and  the  prophets? 
Recall  the  Transfiguration. 

WTiat  does  this  study  mean  to  you  personally?  That 
the  moral  and  religious  teacher  should  be  a  student  of 
religious  literature?  Especially  of  religious  literature  of 
the  highest  inspirational  value? 

Such  acquisition  will  enter  into  the  fiber  of  his  own 
personality,  will  affect  the  quality  of  his  speech  and 
conversation,  and  will  so  become  the  basis  of  his  con- 
scious and  unconscious  appeal  to  others.  It  would  even 
be  profitable  to  study  the  world's  religious  literature 
comparatively,  and  read  some  of  the  sacred  writings  of 
the  Hindus,  Persians,  Chinese,  and  Arabs.  In  conse- 
quence biblical  literature  would  mean  not  less  but  more. 

Do  we  know  enough? 

What  are  we  going  to  do  about  it? 


CHAPTER  Xin 
HIS  USE  OF  OCCASION 

Leading  educational  thinkers  are  saying  today  that 
education  must  be  vital,  must  grow  out  of  a  situation, 
must  satisfy  a  felt  need,  must  solve  a  real  pi-oblem,  nay, 
even  must  follow  out  a  "project."  A  "project"  is  an 
assigned  task  in  which  the  pupil  is  interested,  which  re- 
quires further  study  for  its  completion.  In  this  way  the 
ideas  gained  begin  to  "function"  at  once.  All  this  means 
that  education  must  be  in  immediate  contact  with  actual 
living,  and  so  not  formal,  not  academic,  not  for  its  own 
sake. 

Can  you  restate  the  viewpoint  of  the  preceding  para- 
graph in  your  own  language? 

Do  you  find  yourself  in  agreement? 

Would  you  say  that  Jesus  assigned  to  the  apostles  a 
task  in  which  they  were  interested,  but  which  required 
further  thought  before  its  completion?  What  was  that 
task? 

Can  you  now  foresee  what  is  coming  in  our  discussion 
of  the  use  Jesus  made  of  the  natural  occasion  as  it  arose? 

Do  we  really  learn  more  in  or  out  of  school?    Why? 

Emerson  said  a  boy  learns  more  from  the  book  under 
his  desk  than  from  the  book  on  it.    Do  you  agree?    Why? 

Have  you  noted  who  study  more  as  a  class,  college  or 
professional  school  students?    Why  is  this? 

What  difference  does  it  make  in  your  study  whether 
you  have  a  purpose  or  not? 

At  this  point  recall  one  natural  occasion  arising  in  the 

107 


108 


JESUS— THE  1VL4STER  TEACHER 


life  of  Jesus  and  the  use  he  made  of  it  to  do  or  say  some- 
thing worth  while. 

Here  follow  some  further  illustrations  of  the  same. 


The  Occasion 
Finding  the  traders  in  the  Temple 
Nicodemus  came  to  him 
There     cometh     a     woman     of 

Samaria 
The  leper  came  to  him 
The  bringing  of  the  palsied  man 
He  saw^a  man  lying  at  the  pool 

of  Bethesda 
The  murmuring  of  the  Pharisees 

at  the  disciples  for  plucking 

ears  of  corn  on  the  Sabbath 
"Seeing  the  multitudes" 
The  coming  of  John's  messengers 

Eating  with  Simon  the  Pharisee 

The  charge:  "This  man  hath 
Beelzebub" 

The  coming  of  his  mother  and 
brethren 

The  disciples'  question,  "Why 
speakest  thou  unto  them  in 
parables?" 

The  disciples  request  an  explana- 
tion of  the  parable  of  the  tares. 

"Why  eateth  your  master  with 
publicans?" 


Its  Use 
Cleansing  the  Temple 
Teaching  the  birth  from  above 
Transforming  a  life 

Cleansing  physical  life 
Spiritual  and  physical  healing 
Physical  healing 

Teaching  the    true   relation   of 
man  and  the  Sabbath 

The  Sermon  on  the  Mount 

A  message  to  John  and  a  eulogy 

of  John 
Parable  of  the  two  debtors 
Teaching    concerning    the    un- 
pardonable sin 
Teaching  the  supremacy  of  spir- 
itual relationship 
Teaching  concerning    the  mys- 
teries of  the  kingdom 

Teaching  concerning  the  sons  of 

evil 
Teaching  concerning  the  whole 

and  the  sick 


This  list  covers  not  over  one  fourth  of  the  illustrations 
the  gospels  provide.  Perhaps  they  are  enough  to  illus- 
trate adequately  the  point  that  it  was  characteristic  of 


HIS  USE  OF  OCCASION  109 

Jesus  to  make  use  of  the  occasion  as  it  arose.  This  is  one 
of  the  reasons  for  the  vitaUty  of  his  teaching. 

Make  a  supplementary  Hst  for  yourself  of  the  natural 
occasions  Jesus  used  as  they  arose  and  the  use  he  made 
of  them  either  in  action  or  speech.  Doing  this  will  bring 
home  to  you  the  meaning  of  the  use  of  occasions. 

Can  you  imagine  Jesus  letting  an  occasion  slip? 

Is  it  the  custom  for  us  to  use  the  occasion  or  let  it 
slip?    Why  do  we  do  so? 

What  has  the  lack  of  courage  and  the  lack  of  power  to 
do  with  it? 

What  kind  of  a  guest  was  Jesus,  for  example,  in  the 
home  of  Simon  the  Pharisee,  or  of  Martha  and  Mary? 

Was  the  personality  of  Jesus  so  dominating  that  he 
simply  mastered  every  occasion,  or  do  you  think  of  him 
at  times  as  merging  his  personality  in  that  of  the  com- 
pany, as,  say,  at  the  wedding  in  Cana? 

Did  Jesus  ever  make  formal  engagements  in  advance 
to  appear  at  a  certain  place  at  a  given  time  to  heal,  or 
teach,  or  preach? 

Shall  we  conclude  that  the  only  kind  of  teaching  Jesus 
did  was  occasional  in  character?  If  so,  we  must  not 
neglect  to  add  that  he  himself,  being  what  he  was,  had 
much  to  do  with  causing  these  occasions  to  arise.  Also, 
that  he  specifically  made  certain  occasions,  as  when, 
having  heard  that  the  Pharisees  had  excommunicated 
the  healed  man  born  blind,  Jesus  sought  him  out  and 
ministered  to  his  soul  (John  9 :  35) . 

Can  you  think  of  other  occasions  that  Jesus  made? 

Which  is  the  greater  opportunity  for  the  minister,  the 
Sunday  sermon  or  the  pastoral  visit? 


110  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Which  is  the  greater  opportunity  for  the  teacher,  the 
lesson  in  manners  and  morals,  or  some  good  or  bad  act 
in  school? 

Do  you  agree  with  the  judgment  of  Stanley  Hall  that 
Jesus  "certainly  was  a  master  opportunist  in  seizing  on 
every  occasion,  as  it  arose,  to  impart  his  precepts,  and  was 
in  vital  rapport  with  both  the  individuals  and  the  groups 
he  met"? 

What  difference  would  it  make  if  we  began  now  to  be 
teachers  of  the  occasional  rather  than  the  formal  type? 


CHAPTER  XIV 
HIS  USE  OF  APPERCEPTION 

In  recently  past  time  this  term  has  been  one  to  conjure 
with  in  educational  theory.  You  might  look  up  its  story 
in  an  unabridged  dictionary.  Writers  like  Leibniz,  Kant, 
Herbart,  and  Wundt  use  it  in  different  senses.  Its  edu- 
cational meaning  is  derived  mainly  from  Herbart,  and  is 
easily  grasped.  It  is  this  sense  of  the  term  that  concerns 
us  here. 

By  apperception  we  mean  the  interpretation  of  the  new 
in  terms  of  the  old.  The  familiar  or  old  ideas  which  we 
have  in  mind  are  what  we  must  use  in  understanding  the 
new.  The  old  modifies  the  new,  and  the  new  enlarges  the 
old.  Thus  a  reciprocal  process  goes  on  between  the  old 
and  the  new,  in  which,  however,  the  old  is  usually  more  in- 
fluential in  modifying  the  new  than  the  new  is  in  enlarging 
the  old.  In  those  rare  cases  in  which  the  new  displaces 
the  old  and  itself  becomes  central  in  shaping  still  other 
incoming  new  impressions,  we  have  a  kind  of  mental 
conversion. 

These  statements  are  abstract  and  perhaps  not  fully 
intelligible.  An  illustration  will  help.  A  boy  had  seen 
and  learned  from  his  mother  what  a  convict  was,  the 
kind  that  wears  black  and  white  striped  clothing  and 
works  on  the  road.  He  had  also  learned  what  a  mule 
was.  With  these  ideas  in  mind  they  visit  the  zoo,  and 
the  boy  sees  what  we  know  as  a  zebra.    But  he  called  it  a 

111 


112  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"convict-mule."  He  was  only  interpreting  the  unknown 
in  terms  of  the  known.  It  is  the  best  thing  and  the  only 
thing  we  can  do. 

An  old  colored  laundress  remarked  on  seeing  a  parade 
of  Red  Cross  nurses:  "Befo'  de  Lawd,  I  nebber  see  so 
much  white  wash  before  in  mah  life!" 

Roosevelt  reported  that  as  a  boy  he  was  afraid  to  go 
alone  in  a  church  building  lest  he  should  be  eaten  up  by 
"the  zeal  of  thine  house." 

A  child  hears  sung  the  line  of  the  old  hymn:  "The 
consecrated  cross  I'll  bear"  and  understands  it  as  re- 
ferring to  "the  consecrated  cross-eyed  bear!" 

So  we  know  with  what  we  have  known.  This  is  apper- 
ception. 

Can  you  give  other  examples? 

Now  it  is  only  common  sense  in  teaching  so  to  state 
one's  views  that  they  can  easily  connect  up  with  what  the 
class  already  has  in  mind.  To  fail  to  do  so  is  not  to  be 
understood.  To  do  so  is  to  be  both  interesting  and  under- 
stood. The  old  Herbartian  view  was  that  the  new  should 
appeal  to  the  old  ideas,  and  this  is  still  true,  but  the 
present  view  of  Dewey,  McMurry,  and  others  is  that  the 
new  should  appeal  to  some  present  felt  need  or  problem. 

Can  you  think  of  any  views  stated  by  Jesus  that  in- 
volve the  working  of  the  same  principle.^  Not,  of  course, 
that  he  thought  in  terms  of  modern  psychology. 

In  this  connection  recall:  "He  that  hath  ears  to  hear, 
let  him  hear";  "To  him  that  hath  shall  be  given  and  he 
shall  have  abundance";  "Take  heed  how  ye  hear";  "Let 
him  that  readeth  understand";  "Blessed  are  they  that 
hunger  and  thirst  after  righteousness,  for  they  shall  be 


HIS  USE  OF  APPERCEPTION  113 

filled";  "Remember  that  every  Scribe  well  trained  for  the 
Kingdom  of  the  Heavens  is  like  a  householder  who  brings 
out  of  his  storehouse  new  things  and  old"  (Matt.  13:  52, 
Weymouth);  "I  came  not  to  destroy,  but  to  fulfil."  So 
he  seems  to  have  recognized  the  working  of  the  principle. 

Can  you  recall  instances  of  his  use  of  apperception  in 
his  teaching? 

Each  one  of  the  parables  makes  use  of  the  more  familiar 
to  interpret  the  less  familiar. 

To  the  woman  at  the  well  he  speaks  of  "living  water." 

To  those  seeking  a  sign  he  refers  to  the  "signs  of  the 
times"  which  they  could  not  discern,  though  they  could 
read  the  weather  signs. 

When  they  told  him  his  mother  and  brethren  were 
standing  without  and  would  speak  to  him,  he  told  them 
who  his  spiritual  mother  and  brethren  and  sisters  were. 

In  justifying  his  disciples  in  plucking  ears  of  corn  on 
the  Sabbath,  he  put  their  critics  in  mind  of  what  David 
did  and  of  what  the  priests  do  on  the  Sabbath  day  as 
the  basis  for  apperceiving  what  the  disciples  did. 

He  puts  his  synagogue  hearers  in  Nazareth  in  mind  of 
the  Messianic  prophecy  of  Isaiah  as  the  basis  for  under- 
standing himself  (Luke  4: 16-30). 

Succinctly  he  presents  himself  as  "the  bread  of  life," 
as  "the  light  of  the  world." 

Yet  he  was  not  received.  John  records  that  he  came 
unto  his  own  and  his  own  received  him  not.  He  explains 
it  by  saying  that  darkness  cannot  understand  light.  "The 
light  shineth  in  darkness,  and  the  darkness  apprehended  it 
not"  (John  1:5).  It  was  a  case  of  failure  to  apperceive. 
The  main  reason  was  that  to  the  Jews   the  expected 


114  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Messiah  was  a  temporal  deliverer,  while  Jesus  taugnt 
that  his  kingdom  was  spiritual.  In  vain  he  tried  to  show 
them  that  the  Messiah  was  David's  lord,  and  so  spiritual, 
and  not  necessarily  his  son,  and  so  temporal.  They  could 
not  see  it  so.  Their  mental  eyes  were  blinded  by  their 
own  prepossessions.  Even  the  disciples  after  the  resur- 
rection were  still  earthbound  enough  to  ask:  "Lord,  dost 
thou  at  this  time  restore  the  kingdom  to  Israel?"  (Acts 
1 : 6.)  So  Jerusalem  could  not  recognize  the  day  of  its 
visitation,  the  tragedy  of  which  brought  the  tears  from 
his  eyes. 

Perhaps  Jesus'  recognition  of  the  absence  of  an  apper- 
ceptive basis  is  clearest  in  his  figurative  portrayal  of  why 
his  disciples,  unlike  John's,  did  not  fast.  The  asceticism 
of  John  was  not  the  standpoint  from  which  to  under- 
stand the  festival  character  of  the  kingdom.  "No  one 
tears  a  piece  from  a  new  garment  to  mend  an  old  one. 
If  he  did,  he  would  not  only  spoil  the  new,  but  the  patch 
from  the  new  would  not  match  the  old.  Nor  does  any- 
body pour  new  wine  into  old  wine-skins.  If  he  did,  the 
new  wine  would  burst  the  skins,  the  wine  itself  would  be 
spilt,  and  the  skins  be  destroyed.  But  new  wine  must  be 
put  into  fresh  wine-skins.  Nor  does  any  one  after  drink- 
ing old  wine  wish  for  new;  for  he  says,  *The  old  is  better' " 
(Luke  5:  36-39,  Weymouth). 

In  this  Jesus  says  plainly  that  the  Baptist  is  not  the 
apperceptive  basis  from  which  to  understand  the  King- 
dom. 

Jesus  desired  and  labored  to  be  himself  apperceived  by 
his  countrymen  for  what  he  took  himself  to  be,  but  it 
could  not  be.    His  thoughts  were  not  their  thoughts.    As 


HIS  USE  OF  APPERCEPTION  115 

Stanley  Hall  writes:  "The  whole  of  life  had  to  be  recon- 
structed and  brought  under  the  light  of  new  apperceptive 
centres  in  order  to  bring  fitness  to  enter  his  Kingdom." 

Only  a  few  illustrations  of  his  use  of  apperception  were 
cited.    Can  you  add  others? 

A  useful,  though  prolix,  work  on  this  topic  is  Lange's 
**  Apperception. " 


CHAPTER  XV 
HIS  USE  OF  CONTRAST 

What  do  you  anticipate  can  be  made  of  this  topic? 

Run  down  the  following  list  of  words  with  your  eye 
and  think  the  corresponding  opposite  in  each  case. 

Good. 

Light. 

True. 

Black. 

Old. 

Summer. 

Positive. 

Beautiful. 

Health. 

Spiritual. 

God. 

Dit  it  require  much  time  to  do  so? 

Write  the  opposites  in  a  parallel  column. 

Of  course  this  is  one  form  of  association  of  ideas — 
that  by  contrast.  You  notice  how  natural  and  easy  it 
is  to  have  associations  of  this  kind.  Make  a  list  of  other 
pairs  of  opposites. 

What  are  some  of  the  effects  of  the  use  of  contrast? 
Think  of  its  use  in  art,  in  handling  forms  and  colors. 

Placing  opposites  over  against  each  other  reveals  dif- 
ferences between  members  of  a  single  group,  exhibits  the 
dissimilar  qualities  in  the  things  compared,  emphasizes 
their  antagonism,  has  a  pictorial  quality  and  so  appeals 

116 


HIS  USE  OF  CONTRAST  117 

to  the  imagination,  and  is  likewise  an  aid  to  attention 
and  memory. 

For  all  these  reasons  the  use  of  contrast  is  a  great  aid 
in  the  art  of  expository  teaching. 

Did  Jesus  make  use  of  the  principle  of  contrast  in  his 
teaching.?  Make  a  list  of  illustrations  involving  con- 
trast. Usually  these  illustrations  are  most  obvious  where 
the  contrast  is  between  just  two  persons,  but  often  the 
contrast  appears  also  in  a  more  complex  situation. 

As  used  by  Jesus  the  contrast  is  not  introduced  pri- 
marily for  artistic  purposes,  but  for  didactic  purposes. 
Still,  its  use  so  heightens  the  effect  that  artists  readily 
spread  such  scenes  on  canvas,  as,  say,  the  two  men  in 
the  temple,  or  the  Last  Judgment. 

Let  us  study  the  following  illustrations  of  contrast: 

1.  Lesson:  The  Fulfilling  of  the  Law. 

Formula  of  contrast:  "Ye  have  heard  that  it  hath  been 
said  unto  you  .  .  .  but  I  say  unto  you." 

These  contrasts  appear,  of  course,  in  the  Sermon  on 
the  Mount. 

How  many  times  is  the  formula  repeated.'^  (See  Matt. 
5:  21,  22,  27,  28,  33,  34,  38,  39,  43,  44.) 

2.  Lesson:  Sincerity  in  Religion. 

Contrast:  The  hypocrites  and  Jesus'  disciples. 

These  contrasts  likewise  appear  in  the  Sermon  on  the 
Mount. 

How  many  times  is  this  contrast  made?  (See  Matt.  6: 
2-4,  5-15,  16-18.) 

Study  the  use  of  the  adversative  "but"  in  the  following 
passages:  Matt.  5:22,  28,  34,  39,  44;  6:3,  6,  17.  What 
is  its  effect? 


118  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

3.  Lesson:  God  the  Common  Father  of  All. 
Contrasts :  The  one  lost  sheep  and  the  ninety  and  nine. 

The  one  lost  coin  and  the  nine. 

The  one  lost  son  and  the  elder  brother.      (See  Luke 

15.) 
What  social  classes  are  typified  by  each  side  of  the 

contrast? 

4.  Lesson:  True  Obedience. 

Contrast:  The  two  sons  commanded  to  work  in  the 
vineyard.    Matt.  21 :  23-32. 
Who  are  these  two  sons? 

5.  Lesson:  True  Treasure. 

Contrast:  Treasure  on  earth  and  in  heaven.    Matt.  6: 
19-21. 
What  two  classes  are  here  intended? 

6.  Lesson:  Watchfulness. 

Contrast:  Wise  and  foolish  virgins.    Matt.  25: 1-13. 
What  new  feature  of  contrast  appears  in  this  illustra- 
tion? 

7.  Lesson:  The  Final  Separation  of  Good  and  Bad. 
Contrast:  The  sheep  and  the  goats.    Matt.  25:  30^0. 
How  large  are  the  contrasted  groups  in  the  illustration? 

8.  Lesson:  The  Real  Neighbor. 

Contrast:  The  Priest,  the  Levite,  and  the  Good  Sa- 
maritan.   Luke  10:25-37. 

What  variation  in  the  use  of  contrast  appears  here? 

In  the  same  way  find  the  lesson  taught  and  the  con- 
trast used  in  each  of  the  following  passages:  Matt.  5: 
17-20;  Matt.  7:24-27;  John  4:3,  14;  John  4:21,  22; 
Matt.  18: 21-25;  Luke  12: 4,  5;  Luke  12: 8,  9;  Luke  12: 10; 
Luke  18:9-14. 


HIS  USE  OF  CONTRAST  119 

How  is  the  principle  of  contrast  as  used  in  the  parable 
of  the  Talents  and  the  Pounds  like,  and  also  unlike,  that 
in  the  parable  of  the  Good  Samaritan? 

How  does  contrast  appear  in  the  parable  of  the  Sower? 
in  the  parable  of  the  Rich  Man  and  Lazarus?  in  the 
directions  concerning  whom  to  invite  to  a  supper? 

Note  that  in  the  parable  of  the  Prodigal  Son  the  con- 
trast is,  as  usual,  between  one  and  one;  in  the  parable 
of  the  Good  Samaritan  between  one  and  two;  in  the 
parables  of  the  Talents  and  Pounds  between  two  and  one; 
in  the  parable  of  the  Sower  between  one  and  three  kinds 
of  soil;  in  the  parable  of  the  Lost  Coin  between  one  and 
nine;  in  the  parable  of  the  Lost  Sheep  between  one  and 
ninety  and  nine;  in  the  parable  of  the  Virgins  between 
five  and  five;  and  in  the  portrayal  of  the  Last  Judgment 
between  two  great  groups  embracing  all.  Have  you  still 
other  variations  to  note? 

Perhaps  there  is  no  phase  of  the  method  used  by  Jesus 
as  a  teacher  that  more  clearly  shows  its  esthetic  quality 
than  this  of  contrast.  It  reveals  his  feeling  for  the  form 
of  spoken  discourse,  as  a  part  of  one's  effectiveness  in 
presenting  ideas. 

If  you  were  teaching  the  lesson  of  honesty  to  a  group  of 
boys  and  wanted  to  use  the  principle  of  contrast,  how 
would  you  do  it? 

What  is  the  danger  in  teUing  boys  about  dishonest 
boys? 


CHAPTER  XVI 
HIS  USE  OF  THE  CONCRETE 

The  term  "concrete"  is  associated  by  contrast  with 
the  term  "abstract."  What  is  not  concrete  is  abstract, 
and  what  is  concrete  is  not  abstract.  The  table  before 
you  is  concrete,  but  the  quality  of  utility  which  it  pos- 
sesses in  common  with  many  other  things  is  abstract. 

It  is  easy  to  lay  down  a  working  line  of  distinction 
between  the  concrete  and  the  abstract.  What  would  you 
say  it  is?  That  which  appeals  to  the  senses  is  concrete, 
and  that  which  does  not  appeal  to  the  senses  is  abstract. 
Thus  individual  men  are  concrete,  but  the  universal 
man  is  abstract.  Yonder  bluebird  is  concrete,  but  ani- 
mal is  abstract. 

A  difficulty  arises  regarding  states  of  consciousness  or 
some  element  of  a  state  of  consciousness.  Is  the  sensa- 
tion red,  received  from  looking  at  a  red  object,  abstract 
or  concrete?  The  object  is,  of  course,  concrete.  The 
sensation  is  open  to  inner  observation,  it  appeals  to  the 
inner  sense.  As  such  it,  too,  is  concrete.  Any  state  of 
mind  studied  by  introspection  is  concrete.  So  our  prin- 
ciple holds — whatever  appeals  to  the  senses  (outer  or 
inner)  is  concrete. 

Watch  the  following  distinction  carefully.  We  may 
have  an  idea  of  "animal"  as  a  class  in  mind.  In  this 
case  "animal"  is  the  object  of  the  idea.  Now  the  idea 
in  this  case,  being  open  to  internal  observation,  is  con- 

120 


HIS  USE  OF  THE  CONCRETE  121 

Crete,  but  "animal,"  the  object  of  the  idea,  not  being 
accessible  to  the  senses,  but  only  to  thought,  is  abstract. 
Do  you  follow?    If  not,  try  again  to  get  it. 

Now,  in  the  development  of  intelligence,  which  nat- 
urally comes  first,  the  concrete  or  the  abstract.'^  The 
question  means.  Which  naturally  appeals  more  to  chil- 
dren, sense  reports  or  thought  reports.?  A  series  of  other 
questions  will  bring  out  the  same  idea.  Which  comes 
first,  the  particular  or  the  general.'^  the  empirical  or  the 
rational.?   the  percept  or  the  concept? 

Such  being  the  case,  let  us  ask  whether  we  usually 
illustrate  the  concrete  by  the  abstract  or  the  abstract  by 
the  concrete.  Do  we  use  the  visible  to  illustrate  the 
invisible  or  the  invisible  to  illustrate  the  visible?  For 
your  answer  think  of  the  concrete  imagery  like  golden 
streets,  palms,  harps,  crowns,  with  which  our  minds  pic- 
ture the  abstract  idea,  heaven. 

How  important  to  the  teacher  of  less  mature  minds 
than  his  own  is  the  art  of  illustration?  What  does  illus- 
trating the  abstract  do  for  it?  Does  it  make  it  more  or 
less  intelligible?  vivid?  clear? 

A  great  philosopher,  Kant,  once  wrote:  "Concepts  with- 
out percepts  are  empty,  percepts  without  concepts  are 
blind."  Can  you  figure  out  what  he  meant?  Why  is  it 
that  a  country  boy  may  not  be  able  to  see  the  city  for 
the  houses?  or  a  city  boy  the  forest  for  the  trees? 

The  Swiss  educational  reformer  Pestalozzi  aflSrmed  that 
there  must  be  a  sense-basis  for  all  instruction.  WTiat  did 
he  mean  by  it?    Do  you  agree  with  him? 

Now  in  what  region,  abstract  or  concrete,  are  prin- 
ciples?   axioms?    theorems?    maxims?    proverbs?    com- 


im         JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

mands?  laws?  life  after  death?  all  moral  and  religious 
truths?  If  these  things  are  to  be  taught  in  a  realizable 
way,  how  is  it  to  be  done? 

So  we  come  to  our  question:  Did  Jesus  make  use  of 
the  concrete  in  teaching  the  abstract?  As  a  moral  and 
religious  teacher  his  field  was  the  abstract.  His  audiences 
showed  various  degrees  of  unfitness  and  fitness  to  follow 
him.  How  did  he  bring  abstract  truth  down  to  the  level 
of  their  intelligence? 

At  this  point  make  a  list  for  yourself  of  all  the  illus- 
trations of  the  concrete  you  can  think  of,  or  have  time  to 
find,  in  the  teachings  of  Jesus. 

Since  the  concrete  is  used  to  help  convey  the  meaning 
of  the  abstract,  make  in  a  parallel  column  a  corresponding 
list  of  the  abstract  lessons  so  taught.  Do  this  for  yourself 
first.  In  doing  it  you  will  find  perhaps  some  difficulty  in 
saying  at  times  just  what  the  abstract  lesson  is,  and  you 
may  differ  from  others  in  interpreting  the  abstract  meaning 
of  the  concrete  illustrations.  This  helps  to  reveal  the  diffi- 
culty of  understanding  the  abstract  world.  By  the  way, 
heaven  may  be  concrete  enough  to  those  who  are  there, 
but  to  us  now  it  is,  as  a  place  at  least,  conceived  and  not 
perceived,  and  so  is  abstract. 

We  could  easily  become  philosophical  at  this  point  and 
ask  whether  the  abstract  ideas  have  objective  existence 
or  not,  or  whether  they  exist  only  as  features  of  similarity 
in  particular  things,  or  even  w^hether  they  are  only  class 
names.  Does  the  concrete  alone  exist?  Look  up  realism, 
conceptualism,  nominalism,  in  the  dictionary  or  some 
general  history  of  philosophy. 

We  might  also  draw  another  line  of  distinction  between 


HIS  USE  OF  THE  CONCRETE 


123 


Abstract 


Trust 


the  concrete  and  the  abstract,  somewhat  more  philo- 
sophical, and  say  that  the  concrete  is  a  whole,  and  the 
abstract  is  any  part  of  that  whole,  as  a  tree  is  concrete 
and  its  leaf  is  abstract.  On  the  first  basis,  as  appealing 
to  the  senses,  leaf  would  be  concrete,  too.  This  para- 
graph and  the  preceding  will  appeal  to  the  abstract- 
minded. 

The  following  will  illustrate  the  use  Jesus  made  of  the 
concrete  in  teaching  the  abstract. 

Concrete 
••Behold  the  birds" 
"Consider  the  lilies'* 
•The  wind  bloweth" 
"This  little  child" 
"This  poor  widow" 
"Shew  me  a  penny" 
"Who  is  my  mother?" 
"Seest  thou  this  woman?" 
"Two  sparrows" 
"Hairs  of  your  head" 
Foxes 

Grapes  and  figs 
"Fishers  of  men" 
"What  things  ye  have  seen  and 

heard" 
Ox  in  the  ditch 
Sheep  in  the  pit 
Camel  and  needle's  eye 
The  cursed  fig-tree 
Beam  and  splinter 
"The  narrow  way" 
"The  strait  gate" 
"Wolves  in  sheeps*  clothing" 
"Children  of  the  bride-chamber" 
"Lift  up  your  eyes  to  the  harvest" 


The  Spirit;  Action 
True  Greatness 
Genuine  Benevolence 
Civic  Duty 
Spiritual  Kinship 
True  Hospitality 
Providence 

Homelessness 

Fruitful  Discipleship 

Personal  Work 

Data  for  John's  Judgment 

Humaneness 

Perils  of  Wealth 
Penalty  of  Hypocrisy 
Large  and  Small  Faults 
Difficulty  of  Being  Good 

False  Prophets 

Festal  Character  of  the  Kingdom 

Vision  of  Human  Need 


124  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"Serpents'*  Wisdom 

"Doves'*  Harmlessness 

"Cup  of  cold  water"  Service 

"Reed  shaken  in  the  wind'*  One  view  of  John 

"Light  of  the  world'* 

"Salt  of  the  earth" 

"The  candle  on  the  candlestick'* 

"My  yoke" 

"The  face  of  the  sky'* 

"The  other  cheek" 

Each  separate  parable  is  a  study  in  the  concrete. 

In  addition  every  miracle  was  concrete,  but  to  what 
extent  were  the  miracles  performed  to  teach  abstract 
lessons?  For  what  purpose  were  they  primarily  per- 
formed? To  relieve  suffering  or  distress  or  embarrass- 
ment?   To  prove  his  Messiahship? 

Further,  every  event  of  his  life  was  concrete  and  has 
been  used  by  others  to  teach  the  abstract,  though  not 
so  used  in  every  case  by  himself.  What  events  in  his  life 
were  used  by  himself  as  concrete  illustrations  of  abstract 
truths?  Is  this  one:  *Tf  they  have  called  the  master  of 
the  house  Beelzebub,  how  much  more  they  of  his  house- 
hold"? 

Fill  in  for  yourself  the  abstract  meaning  for  the  ques- 
tion marks  in  the  second  column  above. 

What  additional  examples  have  you  of  the  concrete 
used  to  make  plain  the  abstract? 

What  now  may  we  as  teachers  of  moral  and  religious 
truth  learn  from  the  use  Jesus  made  of  the  concrete? 

Suppose  you  had  to  teach  the  lesson  of  obedience, 
how  would  you  do  it?    How  did  Jesus  do  it? 

In  teaching  is  it  better  to  proceed  from  the  concrete  to 


HIS  USE  OF  THE  CONCRETE  125 

the  abstract,  or  from  the  abstract  to  the  concrete?  Which 
did  Jesus  do  in  Matt.  6:  25-30?  Is  it  from  the  abstract 
to  the  concrete  back  to  the  abstract  again?  How  would 
this  question  be  related  to  the  intellectual  attainment  of 
the  audience?  Is  it  conceivable  that  before  some  audi- 
ences one  might  proceed  from  the  abstract  to  the  abstract? 
Would  it  be  desirable? 

Which  is  the  bigger  mistake,  to  talk  to  children  in 
terms  of  the  abstract  without  the  concrete,  or  to  talk 
to  adults  in  terms  of  the  concrete  without  the  abstract? 

In  the  preparation  of  the  next  lesson  you  have  to  teach, 
note  its  abstract  and  its  concrete  elements. 

One  big  practical  principle  we  derive  from  this  study  is 
this:  Never  try  to  teach  the  abstract  without  attaching  it  to 
the  concrete.  If  you  have  to  teach  honesty  to  boys,  tell 
true  stories  of  boys  who  were  honest  when  it  was  hard 
to  be  so,  and  so  on. 

Is  that  teaching  principle  just  given  abstract  or  con- 
crete?   How  would  you  make  it  the  other? 

We  have  now  repeatedly  seen  how  entirely  in  accord 
with  the  best  we  know  today  in  educational  theory  is  the 
practice  of  Jesus.  How  do  you  account  for  this?  Would 
you  describe  Jesus  as  "a  born  teacher"?  Do  you  think 
he  may  have  imitated  any  of  his  own  teachers  in  the 
Nazareth  synagogue  school,  or  elsewhere?  Do  you  sup- 
pose he  just  taught  properly  in  a  natural  way?  Do  you 
think  he  may  ever  have  considered  the  methods  of  teach- 
ing in  a  conscious  way?  With  what  problems  may  he 
have  occupied  his  mind  during  "the  eighteen  silent 
years"?  Of  course,  our  answers  here  have  to  be  held 
tentatively. 


CHAPTER  XVII 
HIS  USE  OF  SYMBOLS 

The  use  of  the  symbol  is  very  closely  related  to  the 
use  of  the  concrete.  The  symbol  is  itself  something 
concrete  set  apart  as  a  design  or  emblem  to  typify  the 
abstract.  Acts  once  performed  as  well  as  emblems  re- 
peatedly used  may  be  symbolic.  It  is  a  very  interesting 
subject,  as  we  shall  find. 

Illustrations  of  symbols  may  be  found  in  many  de- 
partments of  life  besides  religion.  Write  down  a  list  of 
all  the  symbols  that  occur  to  you. 

Just  now  a  new  set  of  symbols  is  developing  in  con- 
nection with  aviation.  For  example,  :, 
+  +  +  +  +  +  +,  ooa,  are  three  symbols  respectively  for 
public  roads,  trolley  tracks,  and  landing-stage. 

Mathematics  and  chemistry  have  long  had  their  sym- 
bols for  addition,  subtraction,  multiplication,  division, 
and  the  common  elements  and  substances,  like  oxygen, 
hydrogen,  hydrochloric  acid,  etc. 

Is  all  language  symbolic?  How  about  abbreviations? 
the  alphabet?  the  A.  B.  and  other  degrees?  the  letter  on 
the  college  sweater? 

Is  paper  money  symbolic?  Of  what?  How  about  the 
figures  on  coins? 

Is  the  cipher  printing  of  telegraphy  symboHc?  How 
about  secret  codes? 

How  are  gems  sometimes  used  as  symbols?    For  ex- 

126 


HIS  USE  OF  SYMBOLS  127 

ample,  emerald,  moonstone,  and  opal  for  immortality, 
good  luck,  and  bad  luck. 

There  is  a  French  school  of  poetry  of  symbolism,  in 
which  poetry  is  made  to  symbolize  music  in  conveying 
emotions  rather  than  ideas,  of  which  Paul  Verlaine  is  a 
leading  exponent. 

Astronomical  and  weather  symbols  abound. 

There  is  even  an  insanity  of  symbolism  in  which  the 
person  treats  events  not  as  real,  but  as  symbolizing  some 
mystic  meaning. 

And  of  course  we  have  symbolism  in  religion.  Formal 
creeds  are  the  best  illustrations.  Confessions,  too,  are 
symbols.  The  study  of  creeds  and  confessions  is  Itself  a 
special  branch  of  theology  known  as  "symbolics."  Among 
familiar  religious  symbols  are  the  cross,  the  dove,  the  ox, 
the  lion,  the  eagle,  for  the  second  and  third  persons  of 
the  Trinity,  Luke,  Mark,  and  John.  The  swastika,^, 
appears  in  many  different  forms,  the  meaning  of  which 
is  doubtful.  Many  symbols  of  the  sun  are  used  in  both 
religious  and  patriotic  meanings,  as  on  the  Union  Jack 
and  the  Japanese  flags. 

Why  use  symbols?  They  are  a  great  economy,  they 
appeal  to  the  imagination,  they  suggest  more  than  can 
be  clearly  stated,  they  are  bonds  of  unity.  Think  of  the 
signs  of  the  deaf  mute,  of  the  Red  Cross,  of  the  Y  M  C  A 
triangle,  of  the  masonic  badges,  of  fraternity  pins,  of 
church  steeples,  of  the  phallus  and  the  lingam  in  some 
pagan  worship,  of  insignia  on  banners  and  coins,  and  the 
like. 

It  is  evident  that  symbols  play  a  large  role  in  religion 
and  in  life.    There  are  some  who  hold  that  the  gospel 


128  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

events  themselves  are  primarily  symbols  of  the  common 
experiences  in  the  life  of  humanity.  Did  you  ever  meet 
these  views?  For  example,  some  regard  the  main  events 
in  the  life  of  Jesus  as  symbolic  of  agriculture,  saying  that 
the  first  visit  to  Jerusalem  typifies  bringing  the  first 
fruits  into  the  Temple,  the  baptism  is  the  irrigation  of 
the  soil  by  rain,  the  temptation  shows  how  grain  cannot 
grow  in  some  soil,  the  devil  is  unfruitfulness,  the  burial 
is  the  death  of  vegetation  in  winter,  and  the  resurrection 
is  the  new  life  of  springtime. 

How  does  this  impress  you? 

Is  there  a  sense  in  which  the  main  events  in  the  life  of 
Christ  typify  what  should  occur  in  the  life  of  every 
Christian? 

Did  Jesus  make  use  of  symbols?  Make  a  list  of  the 
possible  symbols  used  by  Jesus,  and  a  parallel  list  of 
•their  meanings. 

Compare  it  with  the  following  list. 

Symbol  Meaning 

The  Lord's  Supper  Remembrance  of  Him 

The  Cross  ("Let  him  take  up  his      Sacrifice 

cross") 
Washing  the  disciples'  feet  Humble  service 

Riding  on  an  ass  on  Palm  Sunday       Spiritual  kingship 
"Shake  the  dust  off  your  feet"  Testimony  against 

The  little  child  in  the  midst.  Humility  and  trust  as  qualifi- 

cations for  membership  in  the 
Kingdom. 

Here  are  only  six.  Ought  all  these  to  appear  in  the 
list?  Have  any  of  these  been  regarded  by  some  bodies  of 
Christians  as  realities,  not  symbols?  For  example,  foot- 
washing  and  the  Eucharist? 


HIS  USE  OF  SYMBOLS  129 

Can  you  think  of  any  proper  additions  to  the  list? 
For  example,  can  the  cleansing  of  the  Temple  be  re- 
garded as  a  symbol  of  rejection  of  che  sacrificial  system? 

It  is  not  always  easy  to  distinguish  between  a  symbol 
and  a  concrete  illustration.  The  symbol,  however,  is 
more  or  less  set  apart  to  render  the  specific  service  of 
recalling  its  associate.  Thus  the  palm  branch  is  a  symbol 
of  victory,  and  the  anchor  of  hope.  The  concrete  is  any 
sensible  thing.  So  all  symbols  are  concrete,  but  not  all 
concrete  things  are  symbols.  Thus,  the  ink  bottle  before 
me  is  concrete,  yet  not  symbolic.  However,  an  ink  pot 
with  a  pen  is  an  Egyptian  hieroglyph  signifying  a  scribe. 

Some  of  the  common  symbols  for  Jesus  himself  are  the 
Good  Shepherd,  the  lamb,  the  lion,  the  fish,  the  Chris- 
mon,  and  I.H.S.  The  reasons  for  symbolizing  Jesus 
as  the  Good  Shepherd  and  the  lamb  are  obvious.  The 
Apocalypse  describes  Jesus  as  the  lion  of  the  tribe  of 
Judah.  The  fish  is  an  early  Christian  symbol  of  Jesus. 
The  Greek  word  for  fish  is  ichthus,  the  letters  of  which 
are  the  initials  of  five  Greek  words  meaning  Jesus  Christ, 
Son  of  God,  Saviour.  The  symbol  was  possibly  chosen  to 
throw  the  persecutors  of  Christianity  off  the  track.  The 
Chrismon  is  a  monogram  of  the  Greak  Chr.,  meaning 
Christos.    I.H.S.  is,  of  course,  Jesus  hominum  salvator. 

Notice  that  the  remarkable  thing  about  the  symbols 
used  by  Jesus  is  that  they  are  acts.  Could  the  baptism  of 
Jesus  be  regarded  as  symbolic? 

Study  Jeremiah  13: 1-14  and  note  the  symbol  of  the 
girdle. 

Why  are  such  symbolic  acts  no  longer  performed? 

Do  you  see  any  way  to  use  symbolic  acts  today? 


CHAPTER  XVra 
HIS  IMAGERY 

From  a  recent  book  I  quote  the  following: 

"Dealing  in  likenesses,  contrasts,  and  suggestions,  fig- 
ures flash  word-pictures  which  vitalize  all  language, 
spoken  or  written,  from  conversation  to  poetry. 

"The  most  forceful  figures  are  consequently  those 
based  on  imagery:  simile,  metaphor,  synecdoche,  me- 
tonymy, personification,  apostrophe,  and  irony."^ 

This  author  discusses,  in  addition  to  these,  allusion, 
allegory,  parable,  and  hyperbole.  This  gives  us  a  list  of 
eleven  figures  of  speech.  If  you  are  not  already  familiar 
with  them,  you  can  review  them  in  any  rhetoric,  or  even 
in  an  unabridged  dictionary. 

Now  let  us  see  what  will  happen  if  we  inquire  which  of 
these  figures  Jesus  used. 

Simile.  As  the  word,  from  the  Latin,  suggests,  a  simile 
says  one  thing  is  like  another.  "How  often  would  I  have 
gathered  thy  children  together,  even  as  a  hen  gathereth 
her  chickens  under  her  wings,  and  ye  would  not"  (Matt. 
23:37). 

Metaphor,  The  metaphor  is  an  abbreviated  simile, 
omitting  the  word  of  comparison.  "Go  and  say  to  that 
fox"  (Herod),  Luke  13:32. 

Synecdoche.  This  figure  puts  a  part  for  the  whole,  or 
a  whole  for  the  part:  "I  have  meat  [i.  e.  food]  to  eat  that 
ye  know  not"  (John  4:  32).    This  is  also  metaphor. 

1 E.  R.  MusgrovCi  "Composition  and  Literature,"  p.  142. 

130 


HIS  IMAGERY  131 

Metonymy,  This  figure  names  a  thing  by  one  of  its 
attributes  or  accompaniments:  "I  must  preach  the  good 
tidings  of  the  kingdom  of  God  to  the  other  cities  also" 
[i.  e.  to  their  inhabitants]  (Luke  4:  43). 

Personification,  This  figure  endows  things  with  per- 
sonaHty:  "The  wind  bloweth  where  it  hsteth"  (John 
3;  8). 

Apostrophe,  This  figure  addresses  the  absent  as  pres- 
ent: "Woe  unto  thee,  Chorazin!  woe  unto  thee,  Beth- 
saida!"    (Matt.  11:21.) 

Irony,  In  this  figure  one  means  the  opposite  of  what 
the  words  say:  " ^Praiseworthy  indeed!'  he  added,  *to 
set  at  nought  God's  commandment  in  order  to  observe 
your  own  traditions' "  (Mark  7:  9,  Weymouth). 

Allusion,  This  figure  is  an  indirect  reference:  "De- 
stroy this  temple  and  in  three  days  I  will  raise  it  up" 
(John  2: 19). 

Allegory.  This  figure  is  a  sustained  metaphor  or  simile: 
"I  am  the  vine,  ye  are  the  branches"  (John  15: 1-10). 

Parable,  A  brief  story  with  a  moral  or  religious  mean- 
ing: The  Sower,  The  Good  Samaritan. 

Hyperbole,  or  rhetorical  overstatement:  "Ye  blind 
guides,  that  strain  out  the  gnat,  and  swallow  the 
camel!"    (Matt.  23:24.) 

Thus  we  have  found  in  the  recorded  words  of  Jesus 
examples  of  every  figiu'e  of  speech  mentioned  by  a  modern 
author. 

What  impression  do  you  gain  from  this  fact? 

Can  you  give  additional  illustrations  of  each  of  the 
figures  so  far  discussed  .^^ 

Let  us  turn  to  still  other  figures  or  forms  of  speech.    I 


132  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

am  not  so  particular  that  you  should  be  able  to  name 
these,  as  that  you  should  feel  their  quality  and  sense  the 
addition  they  make  to  spoken  style. 

"Follow  me  and  I  will  make  you  fishers  of  men"  (Matt. 
4:19). 

"Let  the  dead  bury  their  dead"  (Matt.  8:  22). 

"The  last  shall  be  first  and  the  first  last"  (Matt.  20: 
16). 

"Whosoever  would  save  his  life  shall  lose  it;  and  who- 
soever shall  lose  his  life  for  my  sake  and  the  gospel's 
shall  find  it"  (Mark  8:  35). 

"It  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  go  through  a  needle's  eye 
than  for  a  rich  man  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God" 
(Mark  10:  25). 

"Ye  know  how  to  discern  the  signs  of  the  heavens,  but 
ye  cannot  discern  the  signs  of  the  times"  (Matt.  16:  3). 

"Thou  art  Peter  [a  stone]  and  upon  this  rock  I  will 
build  my  church;  and  the  gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail 
against  it"  (Matt.  16: 18).    What  is  the  meaning  of  this? 

"They  that  have  authority  over  them  [the  Gentiles] 
are  called  Benefactors"  (Luke  22:  25). 

"If  a  house  be  divided  against  itself  that  house  cannot 
stand"  (Mark  4:  25). 

"Thou  hearest  with  one  ear,  but  the  other  thou  hast 
closed"  (reputed  saying). 

"Can  the  blind  lead  the  blind.^"  (Luke  6:39). 

"The  rich  man  also  died  and  was  buried"  (Luke  16:  22). 

"Neither  do  men  light  a  lamp  and  put  it  under  the 
bushel"  (Matt.  5:15). 

On  this  passage  one  writer^  remarks:  "The  saying  of 

*Alex.  A.  Duncan,  Art.  "Bushel,"  in  "Dictionary  of  Christ  and  the  Gospels." 


HIS  IMAGERY  133 

our  Lord  is  as  picturesque  as  it  is  forcible.  It  gives  us  a 
glimpse  into  a  Galilean  home,  where  the  commonest 
articles  of  furniture  would  be  the  lamp,  the  lampstand, 
the  seah  measure,  and  the  couch.  And  who  could  fail  to 
apprehend  the  force  of  the  metaphor?" 

"Cast  out  first  the  beam  out  of  thine  own  eye"  (Matt. 
7:5)._ 

"Give  not  that  which  is  holy  unto  the  dogs"  (Matt. 
7:6). 

'Do  men  gather  grapes  of  thorns?"    (Matt.  7: 16.) 

"If  he  shall  ask  an  egg,  will  he  give  him  a  scorpion?" 
(Luke  11: 12.) 

"Ye  serpents,  ye  offspring  of  vipers,  how  shall  ye 
escape  the  judgment  of  hell?"    (Matt.  23:  33.) 

"They  that  are  whole  have  no  need  of  a  physician" 
(Mark  2: 17). 

"Many  good  works  have  I  showed  you  from  the  Father; 
for  which  of  those  works  do  ye  stone  me?"    (John  10:  32.) 

"The  Pharisee  stood  and  prayed  thus  with  himself" 
(Luke  18:  11). 

"It  is  not  meet  to  take  the  children's  bread  and  cast  it 
to  the  dogs"  (Mark  7:  27). 

"If  I  by  Beelzebub  cast  out  demons,  by  whom  do  your 
sons  cast  them  out?"    (Luke  11: 19.) 

"Sound  not  a  trumpet  before  thee"  (Matt.  6:2). 

"Ye  are  like  unto  whited  sepulchres"  (Matt.  23:  27). 

"Ye  build  the  sepulchres  of  the  prophets  and  garnish 
the  tombs  of  the  righteous"  (Matt.  23:  29). 

What  are  some  other  striking  passages  you  would  add 
to  this  list? 

Name  as  many  of  the  figures  of  speech  as  you  can. 


134         JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Is  there  satire?  sarcasm?  wit?  raillery?  irony?  the 
grotesque?  humor?  play  on  words?  paradox? 

An  unabridged  dictionary  or  a  book  of  synonyms  will 
tell  you  the  difference  between  some  of  these  terms. 

Historically,  is  language  more  forceful  before  or  after 
grammarians  have  analyzed  it?  Of  course  it  would  take 
a  psychological  student  of  the  history  of  literature  to 
answer  this  question  definitely.  The  suggestion  con- 
tained in  this  question  is  that  the  language  of  Jesus  is 
more  forceful  because  he  had  studied  the  three  books  of 
Scripture,  nature,  and  man,  and  not  the  science  of  lan- 
guage. Some  one  has  said  that  the  critic  is  the  man  who 
can't. 

Not  to  confine  your  attention  to  striking  isolated  pas- 
sages, read  the  discourse  of  Jesus  on  "The  End  of  the 
World"  in  Matt.  24  and  25,  noting  the  wonderful  imagery. 

Imagery  is  the  poetic  element  in  prose.  It  adds  a  light 
and  sparkling  quality.  This  effect  is  due  to  emotion 
combined  with  imagination.  It  increases  the  pleasure  of 
both  listening  and  reading. 

Really  great  teachers,  especially  teachers  of  ultimate 
things,  must  have  a  poetic  cast  of  mind,  to  suggest  to 
learners  more  than  can  be  told  about  truth.  Such  a 
teacher's  mind  can  play  with  truth,  it  is  not  in  bondage 
to  literal  facts.  Could  you  name  half  a  dozen  such  world 
teachers? 

But  imagery  easily  leads  to  misunderstanding,  if  it  is 
read  as  prose  by  prosaic  minds.  Jesus  was  not  only  a 
master  of  imagery,  he  also  sensed  the  danger  of  its  being 
misunderstood,  and  warned  against  it:  "The  words  that  I 
have  spoken  unto  you  are  spirit,  and  are  life"  (John  6: 


HIS  IMAGERY  135 

63).  "The  letter  killeth,  the  spirit  maketh  alive'*  (II  Cor. 
3:6).  Imagery  means  not  what  it  says,  but  what  it  means 
to  say.  The  observance  of  this  principle  of  exegesis  would 
prevent  many  a  dispute. 

The  New  Testament  rewritten  without  imagery  would 
be  less  subject  to  misunderstanding,  but  it  would  be 
stale  and  flat,  even  if  such  a  rewriting  were  possible.  Try 
to  state  the  meaning  without  imagery  of  "Ye  are  the 
salt  of  the  earth  ...  ye  are  the  light  of  the  world." 
Such  an  effort  reveals  how  Jesus  saved  words,  packed 
words  with  meaning,  feathered  them  with  imagery,  and 
set  them  flying  on  the  winds  of  the  world.  He  taught 
with  emphatic  seriousness:  "And  I  say  unto  you,  that 
every  idle  word  that  men  shall  speak,  they  shall  give 
account  thereof  in  the  day  of  judgment"  (Matt.  12:  36). 

What  does  a  study  of  the  imagery  of  Jesus  mean  for 
us  practically?  What  effect  has  it  on  our  reading  of  the 
New  Testament?  If  we  could  use  imagery,  how  would  it 
affect  our  utterance  in  teaching? 


CHAPTER  XIX 
CROWDS  OR  INDIVIDUALS? 

Did  Jesus  as  a  moral  and  religious  teacher  make  his 
appeals  primarily  to  crowds  or  to  individuals? 

What  is  your  first  impression?  Think  it  over  carefully 
and  note  whether  your  first  impression  is  confirmed. 

Which  is  the  customary  view — that  Jesus  worked  mainly 
with  crowds  or  with  individuals? 

Is  the  question  itseK  valuable  enough  to  consider?  It 
has  some  bearing  on  the  method  of  any  Christian  worker 
— should  he  endeavor  mainly  to  reach  crowds  or  indi- 
viduals? 

Does  a  great  evangelist  appeal  primarily  to  crowds  or 
to  individuals?    Was  the  work  of  Jesus  of  this  type? 

Is  the  so-called  "mass-movement"  in  India  today 
primarily  crowd  action  or  individual? 

Should  today's  program  of  the  Church  follow  the 
method  of  Jesus? 

Give  some  answer,  however  tentative,  to  these  ques- 
tions now.  Our  study  may  change  some  of  these  an- 
swers. 

What  are  some  of  the  crowd  occasions  in  the  life  of 
Jesus? 

Repeatedly  he  taught  in  the  synagogues  on  the  sab- 
bath day,  especially  in  Galilee,  including  Capernaum  and 
Nazareth.  Many  of  his  cures  were  wrought  on  these 
occasions,  some  of  which  we  will  note  presently. 

Is  it  not  significant  that  when  his  home  city  rejected 

136 


CROWDS  OR  INDIVIDUALS?  137 

him,  he  should  choose  as  a  center  of  operations  a  larger 
and  more  centrally  located  city — Capernaum?  "So  he 
came  down  to  Capharnahum,  a  town  in  Galilee,  where 
He  frequently  taught  the  people  on  the  Sabbath  days" 
(Weymouth,  Luke  4:  31.    Cf.  Matt.  4: 13-17). 

During  the  second  year  of  his  public  ministry,  "the 
year  of  popularity,"  he  was  constantly  accompanied  by 
crowds,  from  Capernaum,  from  other  parts  of  Galilee, 
from  Decapolis  (the  Ten  Towns),  from  Jerusalem  and 
Judea,  from  beyond  Jordan,  from  Idumea  in  the  extreme 
south,  and  from  Tyre  and  Sidon  in  the  west.  Just  how 
large  these  "multitudes"  were  we  cannot  say,  but  the 
feeding  of  the  four  thousand,  and  the  five  thousand 
"beside  women  and  children,"  may  give  us  some  idea. 
There  was  a  period  when  the  new  teacher  gave  every 
appearance  of  being  backed  by  a  popular  movement. 
These  crowds,  it  is  true,  for  the  most  part  did  not  really 
understand  that  his  call  involved  sacrifice.  They  came 
to  be  healed,  to  see  works  of  healing,  to  see  the  new 
rabbi,  to  hear  his  wonderful  words,  and  even  to  eat  of 
the  loaves  and  fishes.  Rumors  and  reports  helped  to 
bring  them,  in  response  to  many-tongued  social  sug- 
gestion. 

Jesus  seems  to  have  directed  his  work  mainly  toward 
the  cities  and  villages  (Luke  8: 1-3).  "I  must  go  also 
into  the  next  towns,"  he  would  say.  He  worked  by 
design  in  the  centers  of  population,  though  not  exclusively 
there.  He  would  send  messengers  ahead  to  prepare  the 
village  for  his  coming.  He  saw  cities,  as  he  saw  multi- 
tudes, as  he  saw  women,  as  he  saw  children,  as,  too,  he 
saw  individuals.    Some  of  these  cities  later  he  rebuked 


138  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

because  they  repented  not,  though  mighty  works  had 
been  done  in  them — Bethsaida,  Chorazin,  Capernaum. 

At  times  Jesus  suffered  inconvenience  because  of  the 
crowds.  They  thronged  him,  they  kept  him  so  busy 
that  at  times  he  and  the  disciples  had  not  enough  leisure 
to  eat,  they  kept  his  mother  and  his  brethren  from  get- 
ting at  him,  they  followed  him  when  he  would  try  to 
leave  them  behind,  they  awaited  his  coming  on  the  other 
side  of  the  lake,  they  continued  with  him  for  days,  they 
would  even  come  to  take  him  to  make  him  a  king. 

Was  Jesus  the  master  as  well  as  the  ministering  servant 
of  crowds.?  He  had  compassion  on  them  as  sheep  scat- 
tered without  a  shepherd.  He  would  have  them  sit  down 
by  companies  and  would  feed  them.  He  would  send  them 
away  himself,  after  first  telling  his  disciples  where  to  go. 
By  what  method  did  he  bid  them  depart?  He  would 
leave  them  behind  unawares,  and  go  up  in  the  mountain 
to  pray,  or  take  his  disciples  away  into  a  desert  place  and 
rest  awhile.  He  would  get  in  a  boat  and  speak  to  them 
gathered  on  the  lake-side.  He  would  heal  their  sick,  as 
many  as  came.  He  would  speak  to  them  the  beatitudes 
and  other  wonderful  words  of  life. 

A  multitude  was  present  when  he  healed  the  paralytic 
in  the  synagogue  in  Capernaum,  and  the  man  with  the 
withered  hand,  and  the  servant  of  the  centurion,  and  the 
dumb  demoniac.  Can  you  find  other  instances  of  healing 
when  a  multitude  was  present.'' 

A  great  multitude  went  with  him  to  Nain  when  the 
widow's  son  was  raised,  and  to  the  home  of  Jairus  when 
his  daughter  was  raised,  and  to  the  home  of  Martha  and 
Mary  when  Lazarus  was  raised. 


CROWDS  OR  INDIVIDUALS?  139 

•«■ 

Jesus  attended  the  annual  religious  festivals  (passover, 
dedication,  tabernacles)  of  the  Jews  in  Jerusalem  where 
there  were  always  crowds.  Once  or  twice  he  cleansed 
the  Temple  at  such  a  time,  as  well  as  taught  and  healed. 

He  freely  attended  festive  social  gatherings,  as  the 
wedding  at  Cana,  or  the  great  feast  made  for  him  in 
Capernaum  by  Matthew  Levi,  one  of  his  chosen  disciples, 
or  the  dinner  in  the  home  of  Simon  the  Pharisee  in  Beth- 
any. And  something  always  happened  when  he  was 
guest.  Or  was  it  the  case  that  no  record  was  made  of  the 
social  occasions  he  graced  when  nothing  happened?  Can 
you  find  other  such  occasions  of  a  social  nature? 

To  the  multitude  he  praised  the  faith  of  the  Roman 
centurion,  eulogized  John  the  Baptist,  spoke  the  parables 
as  a  mode  of  selection  from  the  crowd,  addressed  the 
Sermon  on  the  Mount,  told  them  to  believe  on  him  whom 
God  had  sent,  uttered  the  allegory  on  "the  bread  of  life," 
justified  healing  on  the  sabbath,  extended  the  invitation 
at  the  feast  of  the  tabernacles  to  come  unto  him  and 
drink,  and  warned  them  against  the  leaven  of  the  Phari- 
sees, which  is  hypocrisy.  What  else  did  he  say  upon 
different  occasions  to  the  multitudes?  Note  particularly 
Luke  14:25-35. 

In  what  esteem  did  the  social  mind  of  the  multitudes 
hold  Jesus?  It  was  very  different  at  different  times. 
They  were  amazed  at  his  works,  they  heard  his  words 
gladly  because  of  their  note  of  authority,  they  held  that 
a  great  prophet  had  arisen  among  them,  that  God  had 
visited  his  people,  that  he  had  done  all  things  well,  that 
it  was  never  so  seen  in  Israel,  that  the  Messiah  himself 
could  not  do  more  wonderful  signs,  that  he  was  John  the 


140  JESUS—THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Baptist,  or  Elijah,  or  Jeremiah,  or  one  of  the  old  prophets, 
or  the  Son  of  David,  that  he  was  a  Samaritan  and  had  a 
devil,  that  he  was  beside  himself,  that  he  should  be 
crucified. 

Can  you  find  still  other  expressions  of  the  popular  mind 
concerning  him? 

What  do  you  think  as  to  whether  Jesus  preferred  to 
appeal  to  crowds  or  individuals? 

Let  us  see  some  of  the  individuals  to  whom  he  minis- 
tered. Recall  as  many  as  you  can.  They  include  each 
of  the  Twelve,  Nicodemus,  the  woman  of  Samaria,  the 
son  of  the  nobleman  at  Capernaum,  the  man  with  the 
spirit  of  an  unclean  devil,  Peter's  wife's  mother,  the 
leper,  the  paralytic,  the  thirty-eight-year  invalid  at 
Bethesda's  pool,  the  man  with  the  withered  hand,  the 
servant  of  the  centurion  in  Capernaum,  the  son  of  the 
widow  of  Nain,  the  sinful  woman  who  anointed  him, 
Simon  the  Pharisee,  Mary  Magdalene,  Joanna,  Susanna, 
the  dumb  demoniac,  the  woman  of  the  multitude  who 
blessed  the  womb  that  bore  him,  the  two  Gadarene 
demoniacs,  the  daughter  of  Jairus,  the  two  blind  men, 
the  daughter  of  the  Syrophoenician,  the  deaf  stammerer, 
the  blind  man  of  Bethsaida,  the  demoniac  boy,  the 
woman  taken  in  adultery,  the  seventy  sent  on  a  mission 
two  by  two,  the  questioning  lawyers  (two),  the  Pharisee 
who  dined  him,  one  of  the  lawyers  who  felt  that  Jesus 
cast  a  reproach  on  his  class,  one  of  the  multitude  who 
wanted  Jesus  to  divide  an  inheritance  for  him,  the  bowed 
woman,  Herod,  the  man  with  the  dropsy,  the  ten  lepers, 
the  rich  young  ruler,  Martha,  Mary,  Lazarus,  one  born 
blind,  the  mother  of  James  and  John,  the  two  blind  men 


CROWDS  OR  INDIVIDUALS?  141 

at  Jericho,  one  of  whom  was  Bartimseus,  Zaccheus, 
Caiaphas,  Pilate,  the  thief  on  the  cross,  and  his  mother. 

Are  some  omitted?    How  many  are  here? 

What  had  Jesus  done  for  these  individuals? 

How  many  of  these  individuals  had  Jesus  served  in 
the  presence  of  a  crowd?    How  many  privately? 

Why  did  he  sometimes  take  the  afflicted  individual  out 
of  the  city  or  crowd  in  order  to  effect  a  cure? 

Was  any  group  cure  effected?  (Would  that  of  the  ten 
lepers  be  such?) 

Is  it  fair  to  say  that  in  some  way  personal  relations  had 
been  established  with  each  of  the  seventy  who  were  sent 
forth  two  by  two? 

What  shall  we  now  say  as  to  whether  Jesus  dealt  by 
preference  with  crowds  or  individuals? 

Can  we  be  sure  of  our  answer? 

Does  the  "Great  Commission"  put  the  emphasis  on 
the  crowd  or  the  individual? 

Which  was  more  abiding,  his  work  with  crowds  or 
w^ith  individuals? 

Does  the  resurrected  Christ  of  the  record  still  minister 
to  crowds  or  only  to  the  disciples? 

In  the  teaching  concerning  the  mote  and  beam  in  the 
eye,  some  think  Jesus  underestimated  the  value  of  public 
judgment  and  social  criticism.    What  do  you  think? 

Doubtless  for  some  persons  it  is  better  to  work  with 
crowds,  for  others  it  is  better  to  work  with  individuals. 
Recall  Billy  Sunday  and  Miss  Margaret  Slattery.  Can 
you  distinguish  the  type  of  person  who  should  work  with 
crowds  from  the  type  that  should  work  with  individuals? 

With  whom  was  his  most  careful  work  done,  crowds  or 


142  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

individuals,  if  we  can  distinguish  degrees  of  carefulness 
in  his  work? 

Of  course,  it  is  true  that  often  he  reached  crowds  by 
means  of  individuals,  when  any  act  of  healing  or  word  of 
teaching  was  done  for  an  individual  in  the  presence  of  a 
crowd. 

And  it  is,  of  course,  also  true  that  often  he  reached 
individuals  by  means  of  the  crowds  to  whom  he  spoke. 
Some  who  came  to  scoff  remained  to  pray.  Others  who 
came  to  take  him  went  away  charmed  by  his  matchless 
words. 

A  personal  conclusion:  Jesus  began  with  individuals, 
continued  with  crowds,  and  ended  with  individuals,  dur- 
ing the  three  successive  main  periods  of  his  ministry.  He 
worked  by  preference  and  most  successfully  with  indi- 
viduals, because  of  the  very  nature  of  crowds.  In  fact, 
he  did  not  trust  crowds,  nor  himself  to  them,  as  he  trusted 
individuals. 

References: 

Taylor,  R.  B.,  Art.  "Crowd"  in  "Dictionary  of  Christ 
and  the  Gospels." 

Dundas,  W.  H.,  Art.  "Multitude,"  "Dictionary  of  Christ 
and  the  Gospels." 

Omun,  John,  Arts.  "Individual,"  "Individualism,"  and 
"Individuality"  in  same  Dictionary. 

Le  Bon,  G.,  "The  Crowd." 

Baldwin,  J.  M.,  "The  Individual  and  Society." 

Fite,  Warner,  "Individualism." 


CHAPTER  XX 
EDUCATION  BY  PERSONAL  ASSOCIATION 

What  does  this  title  suggest  to  you? 

It  is  a  pedagogical  truism  that  we  teach  more  by  what 
we  are  than  by  what  we  say.  Such  is  the  influence  of 
personality.  We  learn  by  association  with  persons.  All 
that  goes  by  the  name  of  suggestion  and  imitation  is  at 
work  when  one  person  is  thrown  in  contact  with  another. 

The  great  moral  and  religious  teachers  of  the  race  have 
associated  with  themselves  a  group  of  intimate  learners, 
or  disciples,  that  they  might  learn  not  so  much  the  les- 
sons as  the  way  of  their  teacher,  and  that  so  by  personal 
witnesses  the  blessed  truth  might  be  passed  on  to  others 
and  so  on  to  others.  So  did  Confucius,  so  did  Buddha, 
so  did  John  the  Baptist,  and  so  did  Jesus.  Some  of  his 
disciples  in  turn  likewise  had  associates,  as  Mark  with 
Peter.  Paul,  too,  had  associates  in  his  work — Silas, 
Barnabas,  and  others  (cf.  Acts  13: 13). 

Jesus  attached  these  learners  to  himself  by  "calling" 
them,  once,  twice,  or  even  perhaps  three  times,  under 
different  circumstances.  Andrew  and  John  had  first  been 
disciples  of  the  Baptist,  who  directed  their  attention  to 
Jesus  as  he  walked.  Then  they  were  called  once  or  twice 
by  the  lakeside.  The  words  of  the  call  were  few,  simple, 
direct,  personal:  "Follow  me."  In  the  first  intent  it  was 
a  call  to  personal  association  and  then  to  all  that  might 
flow  from  it. 

Mark  3: 14  makes  it  plain  that  the  purpose  of  the  call 
was  that  they  might  first  be  "with  him"  and  then  that  he 

143 


144  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

might  "send  them."  Thus  the  main  secret  of  the  train- 
ing of  the  twelve  was  association  and  its  main  objective 
was  service. 

These  twelve  chosen  ones,  perhaps  twelve  because  of 
the  tribes  of  Israel,  were  Galilean  fishermen,  and  tax- 
gatherers,  and  others.  Only  Judas  was  from  Judea. 
They  were  all  innocent  of  the  learning  of  the  rabbinical 
schools  of  the  time — their  occupations  show  this — but 
not  of  the  religious  customs  of  the  Jews,  which  were 
theirs  also.  Doubtless  Jesus  regarded  them  as  fresh  wine- 
skins, fit  receptacles  of  his  own  new  wine  of  religious 
truth.  They  were  not  always  apt  pupils,  but  their  hearts 
were  loyal,  except  that  of  Judas  at  the  end,  and  though 
the  crucifixion  was  a  rude  jolt  to  all  their  hopes,  the 
resurrection  restored  their  confidence  in  their  Leader.  So 
in  the  end  that  which  they  had  seen  and  heard  through 
personal  association — "the  grace  and  truth  that  came 
through  Jesus  Christ" — was  triumphant  in  their  lives. 
Someone  has  defined  Christianity  as  "the  contagion  of  a 
divine  personality." 

There  seem  to  have  been  several  concentric  circles  of 
persons  about  Jesus.  In  the  innermost  circle  came  Peter, 
James,  and  John,  of  whom  John  seems  to  have  been 
nearest  the  heart  of  Jesus.  Then  came  the  others  of  the 
twelve.  Then  perhaps  the  seventy  apostles.  Then  per- 
haps the  company  of  the  ministering  women  (Luke  8:  2,  3). 
Then  the  multitudes.  Finally  the  hostile  critics.  The 
line  of  division  was  the  degree  of  spiritual  insight.  To 
each  and  all  Jesus  gave  himself  according  to  their  recep- 
tive ability.  To  all  the  parables  are  spoken,  to  the  chosen 
few  the  mysteries  are  explained. 


PERSONAL  ASSOCIATION  145 

Would  you  say  that  Jesus  individualized  his  learners? 
Think  carefully  of  this  question.  Some  of  the  disciples 
of  Jesus  appear  to  us  now  as  such  vague  personalities. 
What  do  we  know  of  Bartholomew,  and  James  the  son 
of  Alphseus?  What  finally  became  of  the  seventy  who 
had  been  sent  forth? 

Some  students  of  the  temperaments  of  the  early  fol- 
lowers of  Jesus  have  concluded  that  Peter  was  nervous, 
John  was  sanguine,  Philip  was  phlegmatic,  and  that  each 
of  the  disciples  not  only  had  a  distinct  temperament,  but 
was  chosen  on  this  account  by  Jesus,  who  in  doing  so 
revealed  his  power  to  recognize  and  control  all  types  of 
men.  How  do  these  views  impress  you?  Some  regard 
St.  Paul  as  choleric. 

To  make  our  study  of  the  individualizing  of  the  dis- 
ciples by  Jesus  concrete,  let  us  consider  the  most  obvious 
case,  that  of  his  treatment  of  Peter. 

Recall  the  characteristics  of  Peter  and  the  way  of 
training  him  used  by  Jesus. 

The  records  represent  Peter  as  having  what  William 
James  calls  "the  precipitate  will,"  that  is,  he  was  impul- 
sive, rash,  impetuous,  bold,  of  the  motor  type.  Perhaps 
his  foil  in  all  these  respects  was  Thomas.  Peter's  name 
usually  heads  the  list  of  the  disciples,  though  he  was  not 
the  first  called.  His  leadership  seemed  natural.  He  was 
the  regular  spokesman  for  the  group,  not  that  he  had 
been  so  delegated.  It  was  Peter  who  answered  for  all 
the  decisive  question:  "Whom  say  ye  that  I  am?"  On  the 
moimt  of  transfiguration  he  wanted  to  build  material 
tabernacles  for  spiritual  beings.  He  alone  would  prove 
that  the  appearance  on  the  water  was  Jesus  by  walking 


146  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

out  to  him.  He  it  was  who  began  to  rebuke  Jesus  for 
proposing  to  submit  to  suffering.  He  alone  of  the  dis- 
ciples protested  against  his  feet  being  washed  by  Jesus. 
Most  stoutly  of  all  he  aflSrmed  he  would  not  deny  Jesus. 
He  rashly  drew  his  sword  and  uselessly  cut  off  the  ear  of 
the  servant  of  the  high  priest  in  the  Garden.  Though 
John  outran  him  to  the  tomb,  Peter  was  the  first  to  enter. 
He  cast  aside  his  garment  and  swam  ashore  to  meet  his 
recognized  and  resurrected  Lord.  These  are  some  of  the 
things  that  show  the  kind  of  man  Peter  was. 

How  did  Jesus  develop  Peter? 

He  called  him  to  a  difficult  task — ^to  catch  men  alive. 
Such  tasks  help  to  tame  impetuous  natures. 

He  gave  him  a  new  name — in  the  Hebrew  Cephas,  in  the 
Greek  Peter — signifying  what  he  wanted  him  to  become. 

He  visited  him  in  his  Capernaum  home  and  healed  a 
sick  member  of  his  family. 

He  placed  heavy  responsibility  upon  him,  giving  him 
"the  keys,*'  making  him  the  group  leader. 

He  allowed  him  to  do  an  adventurous  thing  and  fail — 
trying  to  walk  on  the  water.  Not  that  Peter,  being  a 
fisherman  and  a  swimmer,  should  have  felt  a  panic  of 
fear  at  beginning  to  sink. 

He  rebuked  him:  "Get  thee  behind  me,  Satan,"  a 
rather  humiliating  address  to  one  who  had  just  been 
made  the  keeper  of  the  keys. 

He  corrected  his  reliance  on  physical  force:  "Put  up 
the  sword  into  the  sheath." 

He  warned  him  concerning  the  denial:  "Before  the 
cock  crow  twice,  thou  shalt  deny  me  thrice."  Was  this 
really  a  warning  or  a  statement  of  a  predestined  fact? 


PERSONAL  ASSOCIATION  147 

After  the  denial  Jesus  forgave  Peter  and  re-commis- 
sioned him.  The  resurrection  angel  mentioned  Peter 
especially  by  name:  "Go  tell  his  disciples,  and  Peter." 
The  repeated  commission  given  Peter:  "Feed  my  sheep," 
"feed  my  sheep,"  "feed  my  lambs,"  bound  Peter  again 
in  personal  loyalty  to  his  Lord. 

Did  this  training  make  Peter  rock-like?  The  tradition 
is  that  on  suffering  crucifixion  under  persecution,  Peter 
requested  that  it  might  be  with  head  down,  that  he  die 
not  as  his  Lord. 

Can  you  similarly  suggest  the  characters  of  James  and 
John,  and  how  Jesus  trained  them?  For  example,  what 
is  "Boanerges"?  Did  John  begin  by  being  an  apostle 
of  love,  as  he  ended? 

Can  you  mention  some  of  the  features  of  the  group 
training  that  the  twelve  received?  For  example,  in  caring 
for  the  physical  body?  in  encouragement?  in  prayer?  in 
love?    Consult  Mark  6:  31,  5:  36;  Luke  22:  32;  John  13: 1. 

What  is  the  significance  of  the  fact  that  Jesus  would 
address  the  disciples  at  times  as  "children,"  "lads,"  "little 
flock"?,  (See  Mark  2:  5,  10:  24;  Luke  12:  32;  John  13:  33, 
21:5.) 

What  are  some  differences  between  a  teacher  today 
before  his  class  and  Jesus  with  the  twelve? 

The  twelve  were  dependent  on  Jesus  for  their  training. 
Was  he  also  in  a  measure  dependent  on  them  for  com- 
panionship and  strength?  See  Luke  22:  28,  and  remem- 
ber the  agony  in  the  garden. 

Name  some  respects  in  which  Christianity  in  its  history 
has  exemplified  this  same  reliance  on  the  principle  of 
human  association. 


148  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

It  is  sometimes  said  that  the  Church  is  in  the  New 
Testament,  but  not  the  Y  M  C  A.  Is  the  principle  of 
the  Y  M  C  A  there? 

What  further  additions  would  you  make  to  this  dis- 
cussion? 


CHAPTER  XXI 
MOTIVATION 

By  the  "motive"  of  an  act  we  mean  what?  You  are 
now  doing  something.  Why?  You  have  in  the  past 
undertaken  some  accomplishment.  Why  did  you  do  so? 
Perhaps  you  are  now  in  the  midst  of  some  undertaking, 
as  a  student  in  a  school.    Why? 

We  mean  two  things  by  "motive,"  either  the  antece- 
dent reason  or  the  consequent  purpose  of  an  act.  So  the 
motive  is  what  moves  us.  We  are  moved  both  by  an 
impulse  behind  the  act  and  by  the  thought  of  a  result  to 
be  accomplished.  Thus,  a  man  responds  to  the  dinner 
call.  The  antecedent  reason  may  be  the  sensation  of 
hunger,  or  the  fear  that  unless  he  goes  he  may  be  late  and 
miss  his  meal  altogether.  The  consequent  purpose  is 
that  he  may  eat  and  be  satisfied  and  nourished  for  his 
work.  This  is  "consequent"  because  it  follows  the  act, 
though  the  purpose  itself  that  this  result  be  accomplished 
is  antecedent  to  the  act. 

May  there  be  action  without  purpose  or  end?  Cer- 
tainly, all  instinctive  and  involuntary  action  is  of  this 
type.  A  man  sits  on  a  tack  and  rises  reflexly.  There  was 
an  antecedent  reason,  but  no  consequent  purpose,  nor 
time  to  formulate  one,  though  of  course  there  is  a  de- 
sirable result. 

May  the  two  meanings  of  "motive"  be  reduced  to  one? 
Perhaps  so,  in  this  way:  Anything  which  moves  us  to  act 
or  tends  so  to  do  is  a  motive.     But  even  so,  we  have  to 

149 


150  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

distinguish  between  sensations  and  feelings  as  impelling 
us  to  action  and  intellectuaUy  presented  ends  voluntarily- 
chosen  to  be  accomplished.  In  sum,  then,  a  motive  is  any 
ground  for  our  action,  either  a  felt  antecedent  of  the  act 
or  an  anticipated  and  chosen  consequent  of  the  act. 

You  will  not  mind  first  mastering  this  little  bit  of 
antecedent  psychology  in  view  of  the  consequent  use  we 
will  make  of  it. 

Now,  how  are  teachers  concerned  with  all  this?  What 
would  you  say?  Simply  this:  We  get  no  action  from 
pupils  without  first  awakening  motives.  And  some  mo- 
tives are  more  effective  and  some  more  desirable  than 
others.  To  avoid  physical  pain  is  a  very  effective  motive 
— is  it  the  most  desirable  motive? 

What  are  some  effective  motives? 

What  are  some  desirable  motives? 

What  is  the  problem  of  the  teacher  in  motivation?  It 
might  be  stated  in  this  way:  To  make  the  desirable 
motives  effective. 

Among  effective  motives  are  the  avoidance  of  pain, 
the  securing  of  pleasure.  Among  desirable  motives  are 
doing  right  for  right's  sake,  securing  the  common  welfare, 
and  the  Uke.  In  certain  instances,  the  effective  motive 
may  be  desirable,  as  securing  relief  from  toothache.  In 
the  case  of  properly  trained  people,  the  desirable  motives 
are  also  effective,  as  when  for  the  common  good  one 
subordinates  his  own  interest. 

The  various  motives  which  move  men  to  action  number 
so  many  that,  if  possible,  it  would  be  well  to  group  them. 
Could  you  suggest  any  way  of  classifying  the  motives? 

We  might  say  that  some  acts  are  exclusively  for  self. 


MOTIVATION  151 

some  mainly  for  self  and  partly  for  others,  some  partly 
for  self  and  mainly  for  others,  and  some  exclusively  for 
others. 

Would  you  allow  that  these  four  classes  exist? 

If  so,  we  have  the  following  four  groups  of  motives: 
(1)  egoistic,  (2)  egoistic-siltnnstic,  (3)  egoistic-altruistic, 
and  (4)  altruistic.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  some  deny  the 
existence  of  the  first  and  fourth  groups. 

For  the  average  person,  which  groups  of  motives  are 
most  effective? 

For  the  properly  trained  person? 

Which  groups  of  motives  are  most  desirable? 

It  may  seem  that  we  are  a  long  time  in  coming  to  the 
question,  which  is.  To  what  motives  did  Jesus  appeal? 

Make  a  list  of  these  motives. 

Classify  them  according  to  the  four  groups  given  above. 

What  are  your  results? 

In  each  of  the  following  passages,  determine  first  to 
what  motive  Jesus  is  appealing  and  second,  how  this 
motive  should  be  classified. 

The  Wise  and  Foolish  Man,  Matt.  7:  24-27. 

Results  of  Belief  and  Unbelief,  John  3: 16. 

The  Sheep  and  the  Goats  at  the  Judgment,  Matt.  25: 
31-46. 

Seeking  the  Kingdom  of  God  First,  Matt.  6:  33. 

"What  then  shall  we  have?"  Mark  10:  28-31. 

True  Greatness,  Matt.  20:  21-28. 

Cross-Bearing,  Matt.  16:24-27. 

The  Call  of  Nathanael,  John  1:  47-51. 

The  Conversation  with  the  Samaritan  Woman,  John  4: 
4-38. 


152  JESUS—THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"Fishers  of  Men,"  Mark  1: 16-18. 

Idle  Words,  Matt.  12:  36,  37. 

The  Unpardonable  Sin,  Mark  3:  28,  29, 

What  are  your  conclusions.? 

To  which  group  of  motives  did  Jesus  mainly  appeal.? 
How  high  did  he  set  the  standard  of  motive? 
How  effective  were  these  motives  at  the  time.? 
How  effective  have  they  since  proved  themselves  to  be.? 
Is  it  hard  or  easy  to  be  a  Christian? 
Why  in  the  course  of  nineteen  centuries  has  the  world 
not  become  Christian? 

Would  you  regard  the  idealism  of  Jesus  as  practical? 

In  speaking  of  the  motives  in  men  to  which  Jesus  ap- 
pealed, we  should  distinguish  between  the  motives  he 
intended  to  arouse,  and  those  naturally  aroused  without 
its  being  intended.  Thus,  some  followed  him  because 
they  ate  of  the  loaves  and  were  filled,  for  which  they 
received  his  rebuke.  His  intention  in  feeding  them  was 
to  relieve  their  distress,  not  to  secure  a  following.  See 
John  6 :  25-27.  In  the  same  connection,  in  removing  the 
lower  motive  he  appealed  to  a  higher  motive:  "Work 
not  for  the  food  which  perisheth,  but  for  the  food  which 
abideth  unto  eternal  life." 

We  may  distinguish  not  only  the  egoistic  from  the 
altruistic  motives,  but  also  the  natural  or  intrinsic  from 
the  artificial  or  extrinsic  motives  or  incentives.  Can  you 
draw  this  distinction  in  advance? 

If  a  pupil  works  at  his  algebra  because  he  has  to,  or 
because  he  is  promised  some  reward  by  his  parents  if 
he  does  well  in  it,  then  his  motive  is  artificial  or  extrinsic. 


MOTIVATION  153 

If,  however,  he  is  interested  in  it  and  wants  to  do  it,  his 
motive  is  natural  or  intrinsic. 

Thus  an  intrinsic  motive  is  one  growing  out  of  the 
work  itself  or  its  natural  consequences,  while  an  extrinsic 
motive  is  one  growing  out  of  some  external  or  arbitrary 
addition  to  the  thing  being  done. 

Is  studying  a  lesson  in  order  to  avoid  a  penalty  an 
intrinsic  or  extrinsic  motive .^^  Is  studying  a  subject  not 
because  one  is  interested  in  it  but  because  it  is  required 
for  admission  to  college  an  intrinsic  or  extrinsic  motive  .^^ 
What  kind  of  motive  is  it  if  one  studies  for  the  sake  of 
the  personal  development  that  comes  from  study  .^ 

Review  the  motives  to  which  Jesus  appealed.  Are 
they  intrinsic  or  extrinsic.'^  Are  they  both?  See  par- 
ticularly Mark  10:  28-31,  and  Mark  9:  43-49. 

When  are  we  justified  in  using  extrinsic  motives? 
When  not  justified?  What  have  maturity  and  training 
to  do  with  this  matter? 

In  this  connection  recall  the  teaching  of  Jesus:  "A 
disciple  [or  learner]  is  not  above  his  teacher,  nor  a  servant 
above  his  lord.  It  is  enough  for  the  disciple  that  he  be 
as  his  teacher,  and  the  servant  as  his  lord"  (Matt.  10: 
24,  25). 

By  what  motives  was  Jesus  himself  animated? 

Make  a  list  of  these  motives. 

How  would  you  classify  them?  See  Mark  1:  38,  Luke 
4:  43,  John  15:  13,  Heb.  12:  2,  and  many  other  passages. 

Would  you  say  that  the  motives  of  Jesus  were  in  the 
third  or  the  fourth  class? 

To  draw  our  conclusions,  to  what  group  of  motives  in 
men  did  Jesus  mainly  appeal?    By  which  group  was  he 


154  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

himself  mainly  moved?  Is  it  possible  to  act  from  ex- 
clusively altruistic  motives? 

What  may  we  learn  from  this  study?  Shall  we  appeal 
to  the  altruistic  and  intrinsic  motives  when  they  will  be 
effective;  otherwise,  to  the  egoistic  and  extrinsic? 

In  answer  to  some  of  these  last  questions  the  author 
has  only  impressions  which  he  prefers  not  to  state  until 
they  can  be  corrected  or  confirmed  by  the  findings  of  a 
group  judgment. 


CHAPTER  XXn 

DID  JESUS  APPEAL  TO  THE  NATIVE 
REACTIONS? 

This  question  means,  did  Jesus  stimulate  the  instincts 
and  innate  tendencies  of  man?  If  so,  he  touched  the 
primordial  springs  of  all  action,  he  sounded  the  depths  of 
human  nature.  If  not,  his  appeal  does  not  reach  down 
to  the  oldest  elements  in  the  human  frame. 

The  question  is  important,  for  it  helps  us  to  under- 
stand whether  Jesus  released  all  the  energies  of  human 
nature,  and  in  what  sense,  and  so  we  may  see  whether 
and  to  what  extent  his  teachings  meet  the  profoundest 
needs  and  demands  of  human  nature. 

What  are  these  native  reactions?  According  to  James,^ 
they  are: 

Fear;  Love;  Curiosity  [or  "Wonder"];  Imitation; 
Emulation;  Ambition;  Pugnacity;  Pride  (these  four  are 
called  "the  ambitious  impulses'');  Ownership;  Construc- 
tiveness. 

According  to  MacDougall,^  the  instincts  and  innate 
tendencies  are:  Fear;  Disgust;  Curiosity;  Pugnacity; 
Self -Assertion  ("Pride");  Self -Abasement;  Parental 
("Love");  Sex;  Gregariousness;  Acquisition  ("Owner- 
ship"); Construction;  Sympathy;  Suggestion;  Imitation; 
Play;  Rivalry  ("Emulation");  Habit;  Temperament. 

In  MacDougall's  list,  based  on  very  careful  analysis,  the 

1  "Talks  to  Teachers,"  Chap.  VII,  N.  Y.,  1899. 
»  "Social  Psychology,"  Chaps.  Ill  and  IV,  Boston,  1918. 

155 


156  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

innate  tendencies,  which  are  non-specific  in  character  in 
contrast  with  the  specific  instincts,  begin  with  sympathy. 

Whether  Jesus  himself  evinced  all  the  instincts  of  man 
we  cannot  now  consider,  having  treated  this  question 
elsewhere.^  And  it  would  take  us  too  far  afield  now  to 
treat  exhaustively  the  present  question,  and  show  from 
the  gospels  all  the  appeals  to  each  of  the  native  reac- 
tions of  man. 

It  will  be  noted  that  MacDougall's  list  includes  all  of 
James's,  unless  it  be  ambition,  which  is  very  complex 
and  involves  considerable  ideation. 

At  this  point,  go  carefully  through  MacDougall's  list 
and  check  every  entry  to  which  upon  reflection  you 
think  Jesus  did  appeal.  Are  there  any  omissions  .5^  If  so, 
which?  Are  you  fairly  sure  about  the  entries  checked? 
If  you  are  not  quite  clear  what  is  meant  by  any  entry, 
look  it  up  in  James  or  MacDougall.  Of  course,  it  is  a 
new  question,  this  reading  of  the  teachings  of  Jesus  in 
terms  of  biology,  and  one  probably  very  far  from  his 
own  consciousness,  but  it  is  one  in  w^hich  our  day  is  very 
much  interested.  Yet  there  can  be  but  little  objection 
to  raising  such  a  question,  for  one  good  way  to  test  how 
far  ahead  of  his  age  a  teacher  was  is  to  apply  the  stan- 
dards of  a  later  age. 

So  we  will  follow  through  MacDougall's  list,  with  a 
few  hints  about  each  entry. 

Fear,  This  was  not  the  primary  appeal  of  Jesus.  And 
he  never  appealed  to  slavish  fear,  as  perhaps  Jonathan 
Edwards  did  in  his  sermon  on  "Sinners  in  the  Hands  of 
an  Angry  God."     Yet  Jesus  did  appeal  to  fear  in  the 

3Cf.  the  author's  book:  "Jesus— Our  Standard,"  pp.  73-75,  N.  Y.,  1918. 


APPEAL  TO  THE  NATIVE  REACTIONS    157 

sense  of  reverential  awe,  perhaps  in  the  same  sense  in 
which  Solomon  had  taught:  "The  fear  of  Jehovah  is  the 
beginning  of  wisdom."  Thus  Jesus  says:  "Be  not  afraid 
of  those  who  kill  the  body  and  after  that  can  do  nothing 
further.  I  will  warn  you  whom  to  fear:  fear  him  who 
after  killing  has  power  to  throw  into  Gehenna:  yes,  I 
say  to  you,  fear  him.  [Does  this  refer  to  God  or  the 
devil.f^  Read  on.]  Are  not  &ve  sparrows  sold  for  a  penny? 
and  yet  not  one  of  them  is  a  thing  forgotten  in  God's 
sight.  But  the  very  hairs  on  your  heads  are  all  counted. 
Away  with  fear:  you  are  more  precious  than  a  multitude 
of  sparrows"  (Luke  12:  4-7,  Weymouth). 

This  teaching  was  given  to  his  friends,  not  to  the 
many.  Likewise  to  his  disciples  he  said:  "Let  not  your 
heart  be  troubled,  neither  let  it  be  afraid"  (John  14:  27). 

Yet  his  teaching  constantly  made  reference  to  the 
house  built  on  the  sands  whose  fall  was  great,  to  weeping 
and  wailing  and  gnashing  of  teeth,  to  the  undying  worm 
and  the  unquenched  fire,  to  the  outer  darkness,  to  the 
broad  way  leading  to  destruction  and  to  the  many  going 
in  thereat,  and  to  those  who  at  the  judgment  would  call 
on  the  rocks  and  hills  to  fall  on  them,  and  to  the  wicked 
who,  separated  from  the  righteous,  should  go  away  into 
"the  punishment  of  the  ages." 

We  conclude  then  that,  while  the  motive  of  fear  is 
not  the  biggest  thing  in  the  appeal  of  Jesus  (what  is?), 
yet  he  did  use  the  native  fear  reaction.  Especially  are 
fleeing  and  hiding,  which  he  associates  with  the  last 
judgment,  expressions  of  fear.  When  has  the  Church 
made  the  motive  of  fear  the  main  appeal? 

Disgust.    A  characteristic  expression  of  the  feeling  of 


158  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

disgust,  which  is  the  affective  phase  of  the  instinct  of 
repulsion,  is  to  remove  or  reject  the  offending  object.  It 
is  probable  that  Jesus  appeals  to  this  feeling  in  com- 
manding (is  it  an  hyperbole?)  that  the  offending  eye  be 
plucked  out  and  that  the  offending  hand  be  cut  off  and 
cast  away.  Likewise,  in  warning  the  disciples  against  the 
leaven  of  the  Pharisees,  which  is  hypocrisy.  This  vice, 
which  masquerades  as  virtue,  seemed  to  incense  Jesus  as 
did  nothing  else,  except  attributing  his  good  works,  done 
by  the  power  of  God,  to  Beelzebub,  the  prince  of  devils. 
Rev.  3: 16  is  a  good  illustration  of  an  appeal  to  this  reac- 
tion. Can  you  think  of  still  other  illustrations?  To  what 
extent  do  we  reject  evil  because  it  is  disgusting? 

Curiosity  and  Wonder,  The  figure  of  Jesus  was  con- 
stantly the  center  of  curiosity,  wonder,  amazement, 
astonishment,  caused  now  by  his  physical  presence,  as 
when  going  up  to  Jerusalem  for  the  last  time;  now  by 
some  teaching,  as  by  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount;  and 
now  by  some  work  of  healing.  But  we  cannot  say  Jesus 
ever  worked  a  miracle  in  order  to  amaze  people.  That 
would  have  been  like  casting  himseff  down  from  the 
pinnacle  of  the  temple,  which  he  regarded  as  a  tempta- 
tion from  the  evil  one.  One  of  the  reputed  sayings  of 
Jesus,  newly  discovered,  exactly  covers  the  point:  "Won- 
der at  what  you  see!"  Zaccheus  was  curious  to  see  Jesus. 
Herod  was  curious  to  see  some  miracle  at  his  hands. 
The  emotion  of  wonder  clearly  enters  into  the  beholding 
of  the  lilies  of  the  field,  clothed  of  God.  What  we  wonder 
at  we  tend  to  approach  and  examine.  So  the  response 
of  Jesus  to  the  inquiry  of  the  two  disciples  of  John  as  to 
his  abode,  "Come  and  see,"  is  not  only  companionable. 


APPEAL  TO  THE  NATIVE  REACTIONS    159 

but  strictly  scientific.  The  promise  of  Jesus  to  Nathanael: 
"Ye  shall  see  the  heaven  opened  and  the  angels  of  God 
ascending  and  descending  upon  the  Son  of  man,"  must 
have  awakened  a  wondering  interest.  Have  you  still 
other  illustrations.^ 

Pugnacity.  Much  debate  has  raged  around  the  Chris- 
tian appeal  to  this  instinct  during  these  recent  years  of 
war.^  Relatively  few  Christians  prefer  peace  at  the  price 
of  national  honor  to  war.  Confucianism  and  Buddhism 
have  probably  made  less  appeal  to  the  fighting  instinct 
and  Mohammedanism  more  than  Christianity.  But  the 
fighting  instinct  may  be  directed  against  overcoming 
social  evils  by  other  methods  than  war.  Paul  catches 
the  idea  exactly  when  he  urges:  "Fight  the  good  fight  of 
faith."  Jesus  probably  never  appealed  directly  to  the 
impulse  to  go  to  war  ("If  my  kingdom  were  of  this  world, 
then  would  my  servants  fight  that  I  should  not  be  de- 
livered to  the  Jews,"  John  18:36),  though  some  of  his 
teachings  may  consistently  involve  going  to  war  ("Render 
unto  Csesar  the  things  that  are  Csesar's" — one  of  which 
was  military  service — Mark  12: 17).  Jesus  felt  that  he 
was  manifested  to  destroy  the  works  of  the  devil.  This 
warfare  he  conducted,  and  commissioned  his  disciples  to 
conduct.  He  himself  was  angered,  which  is  the  fighting 
feeling,  when  his  critics  objected  to  his  healing  on  the 
Sabbath.  So  the  characteristic  thing  that  Jesus  does  to 
the  fighting  instinct  is  to  sublimate  it,  to  give  it  "a  moral 
equivalent,"  to  redirect  it.  So  far  from  allowing  mur- 
derous killing  was  he  that  he  forbade  even  its  cause,  say- 
ing: "Every  one  who  becomes  angry  with  his  brother 

*  Cf.  the  author's  "Modem  Problems  aa  Jesus  Saw  Them,"  Chap.  I,  N.  Y.,  1918. 


160  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

shall  be  answerable  to  the  magistrate"  (Matt.  5 :  22, 
Weymouth).  What  else  would  you  say  about  the  appeal 
of  Jesus  to  pugnacity? 

Self-Assertion  and  Pride.  This  instinct  is  the  basis  of 
all  seM-display.  It  presupposes  spectators,  for  whose 
admiration  one  cares,  even  while  they  may  be  regarded 
as  inferiors.  Peacocks,  pigeons,  stallions,  some  children, 
some  vain  adults,  some  megalomaniacs,  and  some  hypo- 
critical Pharisees  show  it.  Jesus  recognized  it  in  others; 
he  did  not  exemplify  it  in  himself;  there  is  nothing  to 
indicate  that  he  appealed  to  it  in  others.  Or,  do  you 
dissent  from  this  view?  Of  course  the  name  of  the  in- 
stinct must  not  mislead  us,  we  must  look  at  its  meaning. 
Jesus  often  asserted  himself  in  expressing  unpopular  views, 
but  upon  such  self-assertion  he  did  not  pride  himself. 
Had  you  thought  we  should  find  direct  appeals  to  all 
om*  native  reactions  in  the  teachings  of  Jesus?  There 
are  phases  of  human  nature  to  which  he  makes  no  ap- 
peal.   Can  you  now  anticipate  others? 

Self-Abasement.  If  there  is  no  appeal  to  self -display, 
there  is  much  appeal  to  self-abasement,  submission,  and 
humility.  "When  ye  shall  have  done  all  the  things  that 
are  commanded  you,  say.  We  are  unprofitable  servants" 
(Luke  17:  10).  The  disciples  were  not  permitted  to  re- 
joice because  the  demons  were  subject  to  them,  but  rather 
because  their  names  were  written  in  heaven.  Jesus  would 
have  the  disciples  imitate  his  example  in  washing  each 
others'  feet.  They  are  not  to  imitate  the  rulers  of  the 
Gentiles  who  lord  it  over  their  subjects.  Because  of  this 
appeal  to  self-abasement,  Nietzsche  called  the  Christian 
virtues  slavish.     "I  can  of  myself  do  nothing,"  Jesus 


APPEAL  TO  THE  NATIVE  REACTIONS    161 

taught.  It  was  because  of  his  consciousness  of  the 
Father*s  presence,  power,  justice,  and  holiness  that  he 
was  always  so  humble.  Are  we  right  in  saying  that  Jesus 
appealed  to  the  instinct  of  self-abasement? 

Love.  Here  perhaps  we  come  upon  the  main  appeal  of 
Jesus.  It  was  to  the  hearts  of  men.  Jesus  himself  had  the 
parental  instinct  keenly  developed,  due  possibly  in  a 
measure  to  his  guardianship  over  the  younger  children 
in  the  Nazareth  home.  His  was  the  tender  emotion,  he 
was  moved  by  compassion  at  any  distress,  he  put  his 
arms  about  children,  he  protected  even  the  guilty.  He 
could  go  no  further  in  his  appeal  than  when  he  included 
even  one's  enemies  in  the  scope  of  one's  love.  It  was 
to  him,  as  to  others,  the  great  commandment  in  the  law. 
The  law  had  enjoined  equality  of  love  between  self  and 
neighbor — "as  thyself";  Jesus  extended  the  command- 
ment in  his  new  form  to  the  point  of  sacrifice  of  physical 
life — "as  I  have  loved  you."  This  is  both  the  novelty 
and  the  core  of  his  teaching.  Why,  then,  does  he  say 
one  must  "hate  his  father  and  his  mother"? 

Sex.  Is  there  any  appeal  in  the  teachings  of  Jesus  to 
the  sex  instinct?  He  recognized  it,  did  not  forbid  mar- 
riage, taught  purity  of  thought  as  a  preventive  of  adul- 
terous acts,  and  allowed  that  for  the  sake  of  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  some  might  make  themselves  eunuchs.  But 
there  is  no  direct  or  indirect  appeal  of  Jesus  to  the  sex 
nature  of  man.  He  appeals  rather  to  its  restraint,  except 
in  the  general  sense  that  any  appeal  to  the  energies  of 
men  meets  a  more  effective  response  under  natural  and 
wholesome  conditions  of  sex  life.  In  the  presence  of 
Jesus  sinful  women  found  the  higher  love — not  the  physi- 


162  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

cal  amoTy  but  the  spiritual  caritas.  Because  of  the  con- 
nection, perhaps  innate,  between  the  parental  and  sex 
instincts,  we  may  say  that  the  prime  appeal  of  Jesus  to 
love  would  be  relatively  inefficacious  without  presuppos- 
ing sex.  So  sex  is  something  recognized  by  Jesus,  whose 
restraint  he  taught,  whose  energy  his  message  utilizes, 
but  to  which  he  makes  no  direct  appeal.  Is  this  con- 
clusion correct? 

Gregariousness.  The  company  of  the  disciples  with 
Jesus  their  leader,  sending  them  forth  two  by  two,  the 
founding  of  the  Church,  the  free  association  with  men, 
the  rejection  of  the  ascetic  life  of  John  the  Baptist,  all 
show  the  recognition  of  and  the  appeal  to  this  instinct. 

Acquisition  (Ownership).  One  of  the  fundamental 
objections  to  any  form  of  the  communistic  state,  in  con- 
trast with  the  cooperative  or  the  competitive  state,  is 
that  it  runs  counter  to  the  instinct  of  acquisition  in  man, 
on  which  the  right  of  private  ownership  rests.  Did  Jesus 
appeal  to  this  instinct.^  No,  not  directly,  but  he  sub- 
limated it,  that  is,  he  redirected  it  to  spiritual  instead 
of  material  ends.^  He  urged  that  treasures  be  not  laid 
up  on  earth,  but  in  heaven.  The  trouble  with  the  Rich 
Fool  in  the  parable  was  that  he  provided  only  material 
things  for  his  soul.  The  trouble  with  Dives  was  that  he 
made  no  heavenly  friends,  such  as  Lazarus,  with  his 
mammon  of  unrighteousness.  The  trouble  with  the 
Rich  Young  Ruler  was  that  his  affection,  possibly  not 
realized  by  himself  until  his  conversation  with  Jesus, 
had  been  set  on  things  on  the  earth.    Lands  and  houses 

« Cf.  the  author's  book,  "Modern  Problems  aalJesus  Saw  Them,"  Chap.  IV,  on 
Wealth. 


APPEAL  TO  THE  NATIVE  REACTIONS    163 

are  to  be  forsaken  for  the  Kingdom's  sake.  Merchandise 
and  oxen  are  not  to  stand  between  the  invited  guest  and 
the  marriage  supper. 

In  all  this  teaching  the  acquisitive  instinct  is  centered 
on  things  above,  not  on  things  on  the  earth.  Yet  Jesus 
did  not  negate  the  acquisitive  instinct  for  material  things, 
he  only  subordinated  it.  Thus  he  taught  that  when  the 
interests  of  the  Kingdom  had  been  placed  first,  all  these 
things  of  earth — food,  drink,  clothing — should  be  added 
(Matt.  6:  33).  Besides,  he  taught  that  all  forms  of  sac- 
rifice were  returned  a  hundred  times  even  in  this  present 
world.  "I  tell  you  truly,  no  one  has  left  home  or  brothers 
or  sisters  or  mother  or  father  or  children  or  lands  for  my 
sake  and  for  the  sake  of  the  gospel,  who  does  not  get  a 
hundred  times  as  much — in  this  present  world  homes, 
brothers,  sisters,  mothers,  children,  and  lands,  together 
with  persecutions,  and  in  the  world  to  come  life  eternar* 
(Mark  10:  29,  30,  Moffatt.    Cf.  also  Luke  18:  28,  29). 

In  what  sense  is  this  true? 

We  conclude,  then,  that  Jesus  did  appeal  to  the  ac- 
quisitive instinct  for  material  things,  but  only  in  an 
indirect  and  subordinate  way,  while  directing  it  mainly 
to  the  attainment  of  spiritual  goods. 

Would  you  modify  this  conclusion? 

Construction.  Beavers  build,  and  so  do  children.  Even 
pulling  down  the  house  of  blocks  is  not  so  much  destruc- 
tion as  a  phase  of  constructing  again.  All  men  are  builders 
— of  roads,  bridges,  houses,  and  ships,  and  even  systems 
of  thought.  Jesus  during  his  young  manhood  had  been  a 
worker  in  wood.  Upon  the  rock  of  Peter's  faith  he  would 
build  his  church.     His  followers  have  built  churches. 


164  JESUS—THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

cathedrals,  monasteries,  hospitals,  asylums.  They  have 
organized  plans  for  spiritualizing  society  according  to  the 
Sermon  on  the  Mount.  The  constructive  instinct  released 
by  Jesus,  as  in  the  case  of  the  others,  is  directed  rather  to 
spiritual  than  material  ends,  the  material  being  rather 
the  means. 

Have  you  something  to  add  on  this  point? 

Sympathy,  The  sharing  of  feeling  is  natural.  We  be- 
come affected  by  the  feelings  of  others  and  they  are 
affected  by  ours.  This  applies  to  feelings  not  only  of 
sorrow,  but  also  of  joy,  fear,  anger,  curiosity.  Sympathy 
thus  is  social  and  it  is  assimilative.  It  covers  so  many 
emotional  states  and  is  induced  in  us  by  so  many  different 
emotions  in  others  that  it  is  better  to  regard  it  as  a 
general  or  "non-specific  innate  tendency"  rather  than  an 
instinct. 

Did  Jesus  appeal  to  this  tendency?  Inevitably.  Only 
an  isolated  hermit  could  fail  to  do  so.  Jesus  shared  the 
emotions  of  others,  as  at  the  gate  of  Nain,  the  tomb  of 
Lazarus,  and  in  the  home  of  Jairus.  He  recognized  and 
commended  sympathy  in  the  parable  of  the  Good  Samari- 
tan. He  taught  that  the  companions  of  the  Bridegroom 
should  not  fast  and  be  sad  in  his  presence.  Can  we 
imagine  Jesus  at  the  wedding  feast  of  Cana  being  emo- 
tionally apart  from  the  festive  company? 

Can  you  recall  other  pertinent  incidents  from  the 
gospels? 

To  what  extent  do  you  suppose  the  disciples  shared  the 
anger  of  Jesus  in  the  synagogue  when  the  paralytic  was 
healed?  or  his  righteous  indignation  at  the  cleansing  of 
the  Temple?  or  his  amazement  in  the  Garden? 


APPEAL  TO  THE  NATIVE  REACTIONS    165 

Suggestion,  Sympathy  is  emotional,  suggestion  is  intel- 
lectual, while  imitation  is  volitional.  These  are  the  dif- 
ferences between  these  three  general  tendencies. 

Suggestion  is  the  tendency  to  believe  in  and  act  on  any 
given  idea. 

Did  Jesus  use  suggestion.?  Few  figures  even  compare 
remotely  with  that  of  Jesus  in  suggestiveness.  Western 
mankind  has  shown  suggestibility  to  his  ideas;  Eastern 
mankind  is  showing  the  same.  Suggestion  has  played  a 
large  role  in  healing,  and  Jesus  as  the  Great  Physician 
also  utilized  it.  His  presence  inspired  confidence.  "Be- 
lieve ye  that  I  am  able  to  do  this?"  he  would  say,  as  to 
the  two  blind  men  (Matt.  9:28).  He  would  touch  the 
eyes  of  the  blind,  or  anoint  them  with  clay  made  with 
spittle  (John  9:  6,  15),  and  would  put  his  fingers  in  the 
ears  of  the  deaf,  or  touch  with  saliva  the  tongue  of  a 
stammerer  (Mark  7:  33,  34).  These  things  quickened  the 
belief  of  the  afflicted  ones.  If  such  belief  were  lacking, 
Jesus  was  unable  to  heal  (Matt.  13:  58),  as  in  Nazareth. 

Can  you  find  other  instances  of  the  use  of  suggestion 
by  Jesus? 

Is  his  divine  power  of  healing  to  be  regarded  as  any 
the  less  because  he  used  suggestion? 

To  what  extent  is  the  use  of  suggestion  in  healing  still 
open  to  the  Christian  Chiu-ch?  Compare  the  work  of 
Drs.  McComb  and  Worcester  in  Boston  (the  Emmanuel 
Movement). 

Imitation.  We  sympathize  with  feelings,  we  suggest 
ideas,  we  imitate  acts.  Invention  marks  Jesus  rather 
than  imitation.  Yet  he  does  imitate  and  he  does  especially 
appeal  to  the  instinct  of  imitation.    He  imitated  John  in 


106  JESUS^THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

having  disciples;  he  imitated  the  prophets  in  speaking 
parables,  though  he  improved  upon  his  models;  he  fol- 
lowed custom  in  sitting  to  teach;  and  naturally  he  ac- 
quired the  Aramaic  speech  in  childhood  by  imitation,  as 
well  as  the  art  of  the  carpenter.  Of  course,  imitation  may 
be  unintentional  as  well  as  intentional. 

Do  you  hesitate  to  think  of  Jesus  as  under  the  influence 
of  imitation?    Why? 

Jesus  makes  special  appeal  to  the  instinct  of  imitation 
in  his  disciples,  sensing  himself  as  their  model.  "Follow 
me";  "let  him  take  up  his  cross**;  "it  is  enough  for  the 
disciple  that  he  be  as  his  teacher  and  the  servant  as  his 
lord'*;  "if  I  then,  your  lord  and  master,  have  washed 
your  feet,  ye  also  ought  to  wash  one  another's  feet"; 
"I  have  given  you  an  example"  (John  13:15).  Note 
especially  this  instance:  "Be  ye  perfect,  even  as  your 
Father  which  is  in  heaven  is  perfect"  (Matt.  5:48), 
coming  at  the  end  of  a  description  of  the  Father's  im- 
partiality. 

What  other  illustrations  have  you  in  mind? 

Play.  The  role  of  play  in  modern  education  and  life 
is  so  large  and  so  valuable  that  we  should  hke  to  find 
that  Jesus  appealed  to  the  impulse  of  play  in  man.  But 
the  evidence  is  remote  and  indirect.  Jesus  must  have 
played  as  a  boy,  for  (1)  no  boy  that  does  not  play  can 
have  the  social  development  that  Jesus  later  exemplified; 
(2)  as  a  man  he  attracted  children,  which  no  man  without 
play  in  his  nature  can  do;  (3)  he  later  recalled  the  refusal 
to  play  of  petulant  children  (Matt.  11:17);  and  (4)  he 
contrasted  himself  with  the  ascetic  John.  This  evidence 
is  not  conclusive,  but  it  is  strongly  circumstantial. 


APPEAL  TO  THE  NATIVE  REACTIONS    167 

Can  you  add  other  items?  or  would  you  subtract  from 
these? 

But  when  we  pass  out  of  the  physical  into  the  mental, 
it  is  clear  that  Jesus  had  play  of  the  imagination,  using 
wonderful  imagery,  exhibiting  a  sense  of  humor,  and 
using  wit,  raillery,  and  satire/ 

Regret  it  as  we  may,  I  can  think  of  no  evidence  at  all 
that  Jesus  appealed  to  the  physical  play  instinct  in  man. 
This  is  very  far  from  meaning  that  he  condemned  it. 
The  simple  fact  is  that  our  games  and  athletic  contests 
come  to  us  from  the  Hellenes  and  the  Romans,  not  the 
Hebrews.  But  we  hold  today  that  play  is  necessary  to 
make  the  body  the  fit  temple  of  the  spirit,  which  Jesus 
said  it  was  (John  2:  21). 

Rivalry  (Emulation).  Jesus  did  not  think  of  him- 
self as  the  rival  of  any,  but  modestly  named  himself 
"the  Son  of  Man,"  the  appellation  by  which  the  Spirit 
was  accustomed  to  speak  to  Ezekiel.  To  avoid  any  clash 
or  competition  in  baptizing  with  the  disciples  of  John, 
Jesus  withdrew  from  Judea  into  Galilee  (John  4:  1-3). 
He  checked  ambitious  rivalry  in  the  group  of  the  dis- 
ciples, especially  between  Boanerges  and  the  others, 
teaching  that  the  greatest  is  the  servant  of  all.  In  the 
Kingdom  there  are  appeals  to  do  one's  duty  and  rewards 
for  doing  it,  but  there  is  no  appeal  to  outstrip  another. 
Jesus  disclaimed  the  power  to  assign  right  and  left  hand 
seats:  It  *'is  not  mine  to  give,  but  it  is  for  them  for  whom 
it  hath  been  prepared"  (Mark  10:  40).  Lower  seats  are  to 
be  taken  until  one  is  bidden  to  come  up  higher.  One  is  to 
strive  to  enter  in  at  the  strait  gate,  but  not  to  get  in 

•  Cf.  the  author's  book:  "Jeaua — Our  Standard,"  pp.  150-154. 


168  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

ahead  of  another.  Paul  uses  the  appeal  to  ambition 
three  or  more  times,  e.  g.,  "be  ambitious  to  be  quiet" 
(I  Thess.  4: 11,  revised  version,  margin),  but  not  once 
does  this  word  appear  in  the  gospels.  Emulation  is 
closely  connected  with  pride  and  the  fighting  instinct. 
The  omission  of  Jesus  to  appeal  to  it  is  no  doubt  con- 
nected with  his  omission  to  appeal  to  pride  and  his  sub- 
Hmation  of  the  fighting  instinct. 

Habit,  The  tendency  to  repeat  an  act  once  done  is 
characteristic  of  all  living  tissue.  No  teacher  could  even 
by  effort  fail  to  utilize  it,  though  Rousseau  said  the  only 
habit  that  should  be  formed  is  to  have  no  habit.  Jesus 
himself  acquired  habits — ^for  example,  attendance  at  the 
synagogue  service  on  the  Sabbath,  "as  his  custom  was." 
And  certain  of  the  virtues  he  extolled  presuppose  the  for- 
mation of  habit,  e.  g.  putting  one's  hand  to  the  plough 
and  not  looking  back.    Can  you  illustrate  further? 

Temperament  No  two  people  have  exactly  the  same 
temperament,  because  their  bodily  organs,  such  as  the 
thyroid  gland,  do  not  function  exactly  alike,  and  their 
nervous  systems  have  peculiarities  all  their  own,  e.^g.,  the 
degree  of  excitability.  Temperament  is  the  effect  of  these 
constitutional  conditions  on  our  mental  life,  especially  on 
its  affective  tone.  It  is  to  some  extent  alterable  by  such 
influences  as  climate,  food,  and  disease.  Of  course,  Jesus 
had  temperament,  and  so  did  each  of  the  disciples,  and 
so  did  all  the  others  of  the  gospel  narrative.  But  all 
attempts  at  classifying  temperaments  are  baflBied  by  the 
complexity  of  the  facts,  though  we  still  speak  of  a  "phleg- 
matic" temperament  and  other  kinds.  Though  we  think 
of  Peter  as  impetuous,  James  and  John  as  ambitious  "sons 


APPEAL  TO  THE  NATIVE  REACTIONS     169 

of  thunder,"  Thomas  as  doubting,  Andrew  as  practical, 
Judas  as  earth-bound,  Nathanael  as  meditative,  and  the 
others  in  still  more  nebulous  ways,  we  hardly  know  their 
temperaments  well  enough  to  say  whether  Jesus  appealed 
to  them  so  or  not.  In  a  general  way  we  do  know  that  he 
ultimately  satisfied  eleven  of  them,  that  Peter  became 
rock-like,  and  John  an  apostle  of  love,  and  that  i>ersons  of 
diverse  temperaments,  except  pessimists,  have  been  Chris- 
tians. In  general,  we  conclude  that  the  evidence  is  lack- 
ing to  answer  the  question  whether  Jesus  utilized  the 
temperaments  of  men  in  his  appeals. 

Or,  would  you  say  differently.? 

Reviewing,  is  there  more  in  this  matter  of  the  appeal 
of  Jesus  to  the  native  reactions  of  man  than  you  had 
supposed? 

Of  the  possible  eighteen,  the  evidence  is  lacking  for 
two,  to  three  he  did  not  appeal,  three  he  largely  sub- 
limated, and  ten  he  utilized  in  unmodified  form. 

Can  you  single  these  out  now  from  the  list? 

What  significance  have  these  facts  for  you? 

How  close  to  the  bed-rock  of  human  nature  do  they 
show  Jesus  to  have  been?  Yiet,  how  far  removed  from 
original  human  nature  in  his  goal? 

Of  course,  no  one  would  think  of  claiming  that  Jesus 
consciously  made  all  these  appeals  to  the  specific  and 
general  tendencies  of  men.''  The  only  claim  is  that  his 
teaching,  when  analyzed,  contains  these  appeals. 

^  See  MacDougall,  "Social  Psychology"  for  the  instincts. 


CHAPTER  XXm 
IMPRESSION  AND  EXPRESSION 

Professor  James^  writes  with  italics  this  principle:  '*No 
reception  without  reaction^  no  impression  without  correla- 
tive expression — ^this  is  the  great  maxim  which  the  teacher 
ought  never  to  forget." 

Did  Jesus  use  the  method  of  impression?    How? 

Did  he  also  use  the  method  of  expression?    How? 

Prepare  two  parallel  lists  of  examples  of  his  use  of  im- 
pression and  expression. 

On  which  method,  impression  or  expression,  do  you 
think  he  placed  the  greater  emphasis? 

Did  Jesus  rather  tell  people  what  to  think,  or  stimulate 
them  to  think? 

Was  it  rather  his  aim  to  get  a  system  of  thought  ac- 
cepted or  to  develop  a  certain  type  of  conduct? 

Did  he  care  more  for  the  creed  or  the  deed? 

People  think  differently  about  the  answers  to  these 
questions  and  it  is  your  privilege  to  have  your  own 
opinion  based  on  the  gospel  records. 

Looking  through  our  table  of  contents  we  may  agree 
that  some  of  the  methods  of  Jesus  are  those  of  impression, 
while  others  are  those  of  expression,  somewhat  as  fol- 
lows: 

Impression  Expression 

Points  of  Contact  Attention  and  Interest 

Appeals  to  Native  Reactions  The  Reactions  Themselves 

1  "Talks  to  Teachers,"  N.  Y.,  1899,  p.  33. 

170 


IMPRESSION  AND  EXPRESSION  171 

Association  Its  Effect 

Conversations  Their  Influence 

Question  Answer 

Discourse  The  Response 

Right  Presentation  of  Material         Apperception 

His  Use  of  Scripture  Understanding  It 

Method  of  Securing  It  Motivation 

Concrete,  Symbols,  i  Intelligent       Appreciation       of 

Parables,  Contrasts  \  Truth. 

Do  you  agree  with  these  entries? 

Would  you  add  to  the  lists? 

Is  impression  the  means  and  expression  the  end?  Or, 
is  expression  the  means  and  impression  the  end? 

Once  again,  where  did  Jesus  place  the  primary  emphasis, 
on  impression  or  expression? 

There  is  another  way  of  approaching  the  study  of  these 
two  methods.  Make  a  list  of  some  things  that  Jesus  gave 
his  learners  to  do.    What  actions  did  he  secure  from  them? 

Compare  your  list  with  the  following: 

"Come." 

"Follow." 

"Go." 

"Sell." 

"Preach." 

"Watch." 

"Pray." 

"Do  likewise." 

"Wash." 

"Offer  the  gift." 

"Stretch  forth  thy  hand." 

"Roll  ye  away  the  stone." 

"Come  down." 


172  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"Go  and  teU." 

"Sin  no  more." 

"Feed  my  sheep." 

"Make  disciples  of  all  nations.'* 

"Bring  the  colt." 

"Pay  the  tax." 

"Show  thyself  to  the  priest." 

"Arise,  take  up  thy  bed." 

"Give  ye  them  to  eat." 

"Work." 

"Compel  them  to  come  in." 

"Turn  the  other  cheek." 

Do  you  get  the  impression  that  Jesus  made  his  pupils 
inactive  or  active? 

What  happens  to  a  learner's  ideas  when  he  does  some- 
thing? 

There  is  a  sense  in  which  it  is  true  that,  first,  doing 
depends  on  thinking;  there  is  also  a  sense  in  which  it  is 
true  that,  second,  thinking  depends  on  doing.  Can  you 
figure  out  which  of  these  two  propositions  is  the  truer? 
And  the  sense  in  which  each  is  true? 

It  is  true  that  all  our  voluntary  action  depends  on 
thinking.  It  is  also  true  that  all  our  clear  and  accurate 
thinking  depends  on  having  had  experience  in  the  field 
in  which  we  think.  It  is  also  true  that  relatively  little  of 
our  action  is  based  on  thinking,  though  this  little  is  of 
critical  importance.  The  most  of  our  action  is  due  to 
instinct,  impulse,  imitation,  suggestion,  and  habit.  With- 
out doubt,  when  Jesus  made  people  think,  they  often 
acted  better;  also  when  he  made  them  act,  they  thought 
better. 


IMPRESSION  AND  EXPRESSION  173 

Do  you  get  the  impression  that  he  rather  approached 
action  by  way  of  thought,  or  thought  by  way  of  action? 

If  we  make  action  a  function  of  thought,  we  are  ideal- 
ists; if  we  make  thought  a  function  of  action,  we  are 
pragmatists.  To  the  ideaHst,  thinking  is  primary  and 
action  secondary;  to  the  pragmatist,  action  is  primary, 
and  thought  secondary. 

Was  Jesus  an  ideaHst  or  a  pragmatist? 

What  are  some  things  that  Jesus  gave  men  to  think? 
Make  a  Hst  of  some  of  these  fundamental  ideas.  Com- 
pare your  hst  with  the  following: 

God  is  Father. 

Men  are  brothers. 

The  Kingdom  of  Heaven  is  spiritual. 

The  Kingdom  of  Heaven  is  social  and  at  hand. 

Jesus  is  the  Messiah  of  the  Jews. 

Jesus  is  God's  Son. 

Jesus  is  man's  Son. 

The  soul  lives  after  death. 

Sin  is  due  to  ignorance  or  wilfulness. 

Does  this  list  change  your  view  as  to  whether  Jesus 
placed  primary  emphasis  on  the  idea  or  the  act?  Acts 
secured  are  expression,  ideas  communicated  are  impres- 
sion. 

There  is  still  another  interesting  mode  of  approach  to 
the  study  of  the  primary  appeal  to  men  of  Jesus.  Jesus 
gave  men  things  to  do;  he  also  gave  them  ideas  to  hold. 
Did  he  also  give  them  things  to  feel?  What  emotional 
attitudes  did  Jesus  awaken  in  men?  Make  a  list  of  such 
emotions.  What  if  Christianity  should  turn  out  to  be 
not  primarily  a  program  of  action,  nor  a  set  of  ideas,  but 


174         JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

a  group  of  feelings?  Is  Jesus  more  of  a  mystic  than  an 
idealist  or  a  pragmatist?  A  mystic  has  union  with  God 
through  feeling  rather  than  act,  or  idea. 

Some  feelings  awakened  in  men  by  Jesus: 

Awe. 

Reverence. 

Thanksgiving. 

Dependence. 

Trust. 

Faith. 

Hope. 

Love. 

Righteous  indignation. , 

Peace. 

Sympathy. 

Joy. 
Would  you  add  to  this  list?    Of  course,  some  of  these 
emotions  are  complex,  and  involve  attitudes  of  will  as 
well  as  ideas. 

Is  the  primary  call  of  Jesus  then  to  men  to  act?  or  to 
think?  or  to  feel?  Feeling  is  an  effect  of  both  ideas  and 
acts;  it  may  result  from  impression  or  expression;  it  may 
also  inspire  both  thinking  and  acting. 

Did  people  always  do  what  Jesus  told  them  to  do? 
Remember  the  rich  young  ruler.  When  they  did  do  so, 
why  did  they?  That  is,  how  did  Jesus  secure  action? 
This  is  something  we  should  all  like  to  know. 

People  usually  did  as  Jesus  said  because: 

He  did  not  request,  he  commanded  with  authority. 

He  begot  self-confidence  and  confidence  in  himself. 

His  magnetic  personaUty  awoke  responses. 


IMPRESSION  AND  EXPRESSION  175 

He  was  obviously  doing  big  things  and  knew  what  he 
was  about. 

He  had  both  moral  and  physical  force. 

His  healings  awakened  gratitude. 

He  divided  the  sheep  from  the  goats,  and  appealed  to 
the  hope  of  reward  and  the  fear  of  punishment. 

Would  you  add  to  these  reasons? 

In  what  ways  may  this  study  help  us  in  our  work? 

Would  you  rather  give  a  man  an  idea,  awaken  a  feeling 
in  him,  or  set  him  a  task?  Which  one  of  these  three  car- 
ries the  most  consequences  in  its  train? 

Would  you  be  inclined  to  put  "non-Christian"  men  on 
Christian  jobs?  What  do  you  want  from  men  first,  a 
changed  idea,  f€;pling,  or  act?  Did  Jesus  forbid  a  man 
to  heal  in  his  name  who  was  not  a  follower? 

The  following  conclusion  may  not  be  correct:  Jesus 
cared  more  for  expression  than  impression.  He  used 
impression  as  a  means  to  expression  as  an  end.  He 
cared  more  for  what  men  did  than  for  what  they  thought 
or  how  they  felt.  He  himself  was  more  of  a  pragmatist 
than  idealist  or  mystic.  To  him  ideas  were  functions  of 
acts  rather  than  acts  being  functions  of  ideas. 

Some  quotations: 

"If  any  man  will  do  his  will,  he  shall  know  of  the  doc- 
trine" (John  7: 17). 

"By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them"  (Matt.  7:  20). 

"If  ye  know  these  things,  blessed  are  ye  if  ye  do  them" 
(John  13: 17). 

"Not  every  one  that  saith  unto  me.  Lord,  Lord;  .  .  . 
but  he  that  doeth  the  will  of  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven" 
(Matt.  7:  21). 


176  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"Every  one  therefore  that  heareth  these  words  of  mine 
and  doeth  them,  shall  be  likened  unto  a  wise  man"  (Matt. 
7:  24). 

"Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  unto  one  of  these  my  brethren, 
even  these  least,  ye  did  it  unto  me"  (Matt.  25:  40). 

"He  that  doeth  the  truth  cometh  to  the  light"  (John 
3:21). 


From  painting  by  Plockhorst  Copyright,  19U8,  by  Eugene  A.  Perry 

CHRIST   BLESSING   LITTLE   CHILDREN 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

HIS  ATTITUDE  TOWARD  CHILDREN 

A  leading  modern  scientific  student  of  childhood,  a 
paidologist — ^to  use  the  technical  word — has  written:^ 

"We  have  another  oracle  most  closely  associated  with 
*das  ewige  weibliche^  and  to  which  we  can  always  turn, 
viz.,  das  ewige  hindliche.  The  oracles  of  the  latter  will 
never  fail.  However  distracted  we  are  in  the  mazes  of 
new  knowledges,  skills,  ideals,  conflicts  between  old  and 
new;  imable  though  we  may  be  to  thrid  all  the  mazes  of 
our  manifold  modern  cultures;  we  do  know  that  there  is 
one  supreme  source  to  which  we  can  look  for  guidance 
and  which  alone  can  tell  us  what  is  really  best  worth 
knowing  and  doing,  save  us  from  misfits,  perversions,  the 
wastage  of  premature  and  belated  knowledge,  and  that 
is  the  child  in  our  midst  that  still  leads  us  because  it 
holds  all  the  keys  of  the  future,  so  that  service  to  it  is 
the  best  criterion  of  all  values.  It  epitomizes  the  develop- 
mental stages  of  the  race,  human  and  prehuman,  is  the 
goal  of  all  evolution,  the  highest  object  of  that  strange 
new  love  of  the  naive,  spontaneous,  and  unsophisticated 
in  human  nature." 

Can  you  paraphrase  this  quotation? 
Do  you  agree  with  it? 

Does  it  remind  you  of  anything  Jesus  said?  or  Isaiah? 
Jesus  was  infant,  child,  boy,  young  man,  and  man. 
What  does  this  signify? 

1 G.  S.  Hall,  "Jesus,  the  Christ,  in  the  Light  of  Psychology,"  Vol.  I,  p.  275 
N.  Y.,  1917. 

177 


178         JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Why  should  God  come  into  human  Hfe  in  the  form  of 
an  infant? 

Why  should  this  infant  pass  through  all  the  stages  of 
human  growth,  except  senescence? 

Compare  this  conception  with  that  of  the  Greeks  that 
Juno  came  full-grown  from  the  brain  of  Zeus.  Remember, 
however,  the  different  conception  of  Hermes  and  the 
infant  Dionysus. 

What  biblical  word,  if  any,  reveals  more  of  God's  good- 
ness and  love  than  the  word  "child"? 

Do  the  birth-stories  of  Matthew  and  Luke  glorify  only 
the  infancy  of  Jesus  or  all  childhood? 

Does  the  idea  of  the  virgin  birth  tend  to  sublimate  sex 
in  all  parenthood? 

So  Jesus  experienced  all  the  processes  and  stages  of 
development. 

When  he  became  a  man,  how  would  you  characterize 
his  attitude  toward  children? 

How  did  this  attitude  differ  from  that  of  the  disciples? 
(See  Matt.  19:13.) 

Which  of  the  two  attitudes  was  more  characteristic  of 
the  times? 

What  motives  led  the  people  to  bring  their  children  to 
Jesus?     (See  Luke  18: 15.) 

What  emancipating  words  for  childhood  did  Jesua 
speak?     (Mark  10: 14.) 

How  was  he  affected  by  the  interference  of  the  dis- 
ciples? (Mark  10: 14.)  (Have  you  noticed  that  Mark, 
though  the  briefest  gospel,  has  the  fullest  references  to 
the  emotions  of  Jesus?) 

Make  a  hst  of  all  the  things  that  Jesus  did  for  children. 


HIS  ATTITUDE  TOWARD  CHILDREN      179 

so  far  as  you  can.  Support  each  item  by  an  actually 
reported  instance,  or  by  clear  deduction  from  such.  How 
long  is  your  list?    Compare  it  with  the  following: 

Some  Things  Jesus  Did  for  Children: 

1.  He  took  them  in  his  arms  and  blessed  them. 

2.  He  provided  for  their  physical  wants  in  feeding  the 
four  and  five  thousand — "besides  women  and  children." 
He  commanded  that  something  to  eat  be  given  the  raised 
daughter  of  Jairus  (Mark  5:  43). 

3.  He  healed  them.  How  many  were  boys?  (See  John 
4:46-54  and  Matt.  17:  14-21.)  How  many  were  girls? 
(See  Mark  7:  24-30  and  Matt.  9: 18-34.) 

Are  there  still  others? 

May  he  have  healed  some  not  recorded?  (See  Mark 
1:32-34.) 

4.  He  observed  the  manner  of  their  play  and  life. 

He  had  noted  their  game  of  wedding  and  funeral  (Luke 
7:  32),  their  sleeping  in  bed  with  their  father  (Luke  11 :  7), 
and  the  good  gifts  they  had  received  from  their  parents 
(Matt.  7: 11). 

What  other  things  had  he  observed? 

Is  it  too  much  to  say  that  here  is  one  beginning  of 
modern  child-study? 

With  what  emotions  did  Jesus  regard  children?  Write 
down  all  you  can,  with  your  reason  in  each  case.  Com- 
pare your  answers  with  the  following  list. 

How  Jesus  Felt  about  Children: 

1.  He  felt  indignant  that  his  own  disciples  should  stand 
between  the  children  and  himself,  and  so  manifested  his 
interest  in  their  welfare. 


180  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

2.  He  used  the  diminutive  of  affection  combined  with 
an  endearing  term  in  raising  the  daughter  of  Jairus,  say- 
ing, Talitha  cumi  (Mark  5:  41),  '*Lambkin,  arise."  From 
all  he  did  for  them  we  conclude  he  loved  them.  Compare 
the  tender  words  to  Peter:  "Feed  my  lambs"  (John  21: 
15);  also  Mark  7:  27. 

S.  He  must  have  regarded  them  with  a  kind  of  sacred 
awe,  "for  I  say  unto  you,  that  in  heaven  their  angels  do 
always  behold  the  face  of  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven" 
(Matt.  18: 11).    What  does  this  saying  mean? 

4.  He  felt  respect  for  them,  for  he  taught  us  not  to 
despise  them  (Matt.  18: 10). 

5.  He  felt  sympathy  for  them.  To  the  women  of 
Jerusalem  bewailing  his  fate,  he  said,  "Weep  for  your- 
selves and  for  your  children"  (Luke  23:  28). 

So  some  of  the  emotions  with  which  Jesus  regarded 
children  are  interest  in  their  welfare,  love,  awe,  respect, 
and  sympathy. 

Have  you  other  emotions  to  report? 

Have  you  additional  illustrations  of  these? 

What  are  some  of  the  ideas  that  Jesus  had  about  chil- 
dren? Give  quotations  or  references  to  support  your 
views.    Some  of  these  ideas  have  already  been  suggested. 

Compare  your  views  with  the  following: 

Ideas  That  Jesus  Had  about  Children: 

1.  They  are  a  type  of  true  greatness  and  of  member- 
ship in  the  Ejngdom.  "Whosoever  therefore  shall  humble 
himself  as  this  little  child,  the  same  is  the  greatest  in  the 
kingdom  of  heaven"  (Matt.  18:4).  "Of  such  is  the 
kingdom  of  heaven"  (Matt.  19: 14). 


HIS  ATTITUDE  TOWARD  CHILDREN      181 

2.  They  are  not  to  be  offended.  "Whosoever  shall 
cause  one  of  these  little  ones  that  believe  on  me  to  stum- 
ble, it  were  better  for  him  if  a  great  millstone  were 
hanged  about  his  neck,  and  he  were  cast  into  the  sea" 
(Mark  9:42). 

Could  this  refer  to  those  young  in  the  faith,  as  well  as 
to  children? 

3.  They  are  identified  by  him  with  himself. 
**Whosoever  shall  receive  one  of  such  little  children  in 

my  name,  receive th  me"  (Mark  9:  37). 
Is  this  saying  commonly  realized? 

4.  They  are  specific  objects  of  the  Father's  loving  pur- 
pose. "It  is  not  the  will  of  your  Father  who  is  in  heaven 
that  one  of  these  little  ones  should  perish"  (Matt.  18: 14). 

In  what  higher  esteem  could  children  be  held?  They 
typify  the  heavenly  kingdom  in  humility,  trust,  and 
service;  they  are  not  to  be  despised  or  caused  to  stumble; 
receiving  them  is  receiving  Christ  and  receiving  Christ  is 
receiving  God;  their  guardian  angels  do  not  have  to  wait 
for  the  Father's  favor,  but  always  behold  his  face;  while 
they  themselves  are  individual  objects  of  his  providential 
will. 

Did  children  come  to  Jesus  readily?  Were  they  happy 
in  his  company?  What  does  this  show  as  to  the  element 
of  childhood  in  his  own  nature?  Did  they  ever  sing  his 
praises?    (See  Matt.  21 :  15.)    What  was  their  song? 

Plato  held  that  souls  preexisted  in  heaven  and  at  birth 
came  into  the  body. 

Wordsworth  sang:  "Heaven  lies  about  us  in  our  in- 
fancy." 

Jesus  said  in  prayer:   "I  thank  Thee,  O  Father,  Lord 


182  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

of  heaven  and  earth,  that  thou  didst  hide  these  things 
from  the  wise  and  prudent  and  didst  reveal  them  unto 
babes"  (Matt.  11:25). 

Also  he  quoted  the  Psalms  in  defense  of  the  children 
singing  his  praises:  "Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and 
sucklings  thou  hast  perfected  praise"  (Matt.  21: 16). 

Are  these  views  of  Plato,  Wordsworth,  and  Jesus  har- 
monious? 

In  what  sense  are  they  true? 

What  difference  would  they  make  in  our  practice  if  we 
acted  upon  them? 

Jesus  sometimes  addressed  his  adult  disciples  as  chil- 
dren. Have  you  some  illustration  of  this?  What  is  the 
significance  of  this  fact?    See  John  13:  33  and  21:  5. 

A  colleague  of  mine,  a  leader  in  the  experimental  study 
of  education,  Professor  P.  R.  Radosavljevich,  writes  me  in 
a  letter  concerning  Jesus  as  a  teacher  as  follows: 

"I  think  such  a  topic  deserves  thorough  study  in  every 
department  of  education,  for  there  is  a  peculiar  tendency 
in  modern  times  to  deviate  as  much  as  possible  from  the 
greatest  soiu^ces  in  our  noble  profession.  Jesus  Christ  is 
no  doubt  one  of  the  greatest  masters  of  ours,  and  the 
attitude  of  the  Great  Teacher  toward  the  children  ought 
to  be  taken  as  a  real  model  for  all  the  Christian  and  non- 
Christian  educators.  Almost  all  modern  studies  in  child- 
study  lead  to  the  pedagogy  of  Jesus,  for  here  the  child  is 
treated  not  as  an  adult,  but  as  a  child  in  the  spirit  of 
Love,  Truth,  and  Freedom.  All  criteria  of  modern  free 
schools  depend  upon  this  great  triad." 

So,  in  the  judgment  of  this  modern  investigator,  the 
attitude  of  Jesus  toward  children  is  the  best  we  know  in 
education  today. 


HIS  ATTITUDE  TOWARD  CHILDREN      183 

In  what  respects  do  we  commonly  fail  to  exemplify  love, 
truth,  and  freedom  in  our  attitude  toward  children? 

What  modifications  in  our  practice  as  parents  and 
teachers  would  you  propose  in  the  light  of  the  attitude  of 
Jesus  toward  children? 

If  all  childhood  is  divine — "for  of  such  is  the  kingdom 
of  heaven" — ^what  kind  of  adulthood,  if  any,  is  no  less  so? 


CHAPTER  XXV 
HIS  QUALITIES  AS  TEACHER 

Most  of  the  books  dealing  with  teachers  and  teaching, 
until  recently,  have  had  a  chapter  on  "The  Qualifications 
of  the  Teacher,"  or  words  to  that  effect. 

The  most  recent  books  have  omitted  such  chapters,  and 
self-analysis  blanks,  or  something  of  the  kind,  have  taken 
their  place. 

In  one  way  it  is  fruitless  to  enumerate  the  personal 
qualifications  for  teaching,  because  they  are  so  many  and 
so  general  and  their  enumeration  does  not  produce  them. 
The  blanks,  however,  for  self-rating  or  rating  by  super- 
visors, with  a  view  to  promotion,  bring  home  one's  merits 
or  demerits  in  a  definite  way. 

We  may  use  the  qualities  of  Jesus  as  a  teacher,  his 
characteristics  as  the  Great  Teacher,  as  a  concrete  ideal 
standard  by  which  to  measure  ourselves. 

What  other  advantages  might  follow  from  such  a 
study? 

Formulate  first  in  your  own  mind  the  characteristics 
which  any  world-teacher  must  possess. 

In  the  following  Hst  check  off  the  ones  you  regard  as 
essential: 
The  Essential  Qualifications  of  a  World-Teacher: 

1.  A  vision  that  encompasses  the  world. 

2.  Knowledge  of  the  heart  of  man. 

3.  Mastery  of  the  subject  taught. 

4.  Aptness  in  teaching. 

184 


From  a  Perry  Picture  From  statue  by  Thorualdsen 

THE   CHRIST 


HIS  QUALITIES  AS  TEACHER  185 

5.  A  life  that  embodies  the  teaching. 

Do  you  regard  each  of  these  as  necessary  for  a  world- 
teacher? 

Would  you  add  to  this  list  of  minimum  essentials? 

Now  consider  whether  Jesus  had  each  of  these  qualijS- 
cations. 

1.  Did  his  vision  encompass  the  world?  "Other  sheep 
I  have;  them  also  I  must  bring.'*  "And  I,  if  I  be  lifted 
up,  will  draw  all  men  unto  me."  "The  Kingdom  of 
Heaven  is  as  leaven  which  a  woman  took  and  hid  in 
three  measures  of  meal  until  the  whole  is  leavened." 
"Go  ye  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature." 

What  do  you  conclude? 

Have  you  still  other  quotations? 

2.  Did  Jesus  know  what  was  in  the  heart  of  man? 
"He  needed  not  that  any  should  tell  him,  for  he  himself 
knew  what  was  in  man."  "Why  try  ye  me?"  "And 
Jesus,  perceiving  their  craftiness,"  etc.  "Why  reason  ye 
these  things  among  yourselves?"  "Behold  an  Israelite 
indeed  in  whom  is  no  guile."  "Thou  hast  had  five  hus- 
bands and  he  whom  thou  now  hast  is  not  thy  husband." 
"The  woman  said,  *Come,  see  a  man  that  told  me  all 
things  that  ever  I  did.' " 

Have  you  other  quotations? 
What  do  you  conclude? 

How  do  you  explain  the  knowledge  Jesus  had  of  human 
nature  in  general  and  of  particular  individuals? 

3.  Again,  was  Jesus  a  master  of  the  subject  he  taught? 
What  was  his  subject?  Was  it  science?  or  comparative 
literature?  or  morality  and  religion? 


186         JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"Never  man  spake  as  this  man."  "He  taught  them  as 
one  having  authority  and  not  as  their  scribes."  "Whence 
hath  this  man  letters,  never  having  learned?"  "And  no 
man  was  able  to  answer  him  a  word,  neither  durst  any 
man  from  that  day  forth  ask  him  any  more  questions." 

Jesus  revealed  the  spiritual  nature  and  capacities  of 
the  soul  in  a  way  we  hardly  imderstand,  not  to  say  imi- 
tate. 

4.  Was  Jesus  apt  at  teaching? 

Think  of  those  "unlearned  and  ignorant  men"  (Acts 
4: 13)  whom  Jesus  chose  to  be  his  pupils,  and  what  force- 
ful personalities  they  became  under  his  tutelage.  Recall 
how  "the  common  people  heard  him  gladly."  Note  his 
influence  on  Nicodemus,  one  of  the  rulers  of  the  Jews. 
Remember  that  he  never  wrote,  yet  his  words  were  not 
forgotten.  Think  of  the  books  that  have  been  written 
about  his  methods  as  a  teacher.  Have  you  other  facts  to 
cite? 

From  whom  have  we  ourselves  learned  so  much? 

5.  Did  the  life  of  Jesus  embody  his  teaching? 

"Of  all  that  Jesus  began  both  to  do  and  to  teach."  "I 
am  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life."  "If  any  man  will 
do  his  will,  he  shall  know  of  the  doctrine."  "He  that 
doeth  the  truth  cometh  to  the  light."  "Which  one  of 
you  convicteth  me  of  sin?"  "The  prince  of  this  world 
cometh  and  hath  nothing  in  me."  "This  man  hath  done 
nothing  amiss."  "I  find  no  fault  in  him."  "Truly 
this  was  the  Son  of  God."  "I  am  meek  and  lowly  of 
heart." 

What  is  the  effect  of  teaching  unsupported  by  living? 

First  Jesus  did,  and  then  taught.     His  Hving  is  the 


HIS  QUALITIES  AS  TEACHER  187 

tragic  dramatization  of  his  teaching.  The  truth  that  he 
lived  and  taught  was,  in  his  own  paradox,  "He  that  loseth 
his  life  shall  find  it." 

Shall  we  then  conclude  that  Jesus  fully  possessed  the 
five  requisite  qualifications  of  a  world-teacher?  The  fact 
that  the  centuries  have  shown  him  to  be  a  world-teacher 
would  be  experiential  proof  of  an  afl&rmative  answer. 
That  his  followers  number  more  today  than  ever  before, 
and  that  they  are  full  of  faith  and  works,  also  shows  that 
in  time  all  the  world  is  to  know  his  teaching. 

You  will  be  interested  in  the  following  experience.  Once, 
with  no  thought  of  Jesus  as  teacher  in  mind,  I  took  my 
turn  in  the  popular  pedagogical  pastime  of  stating  the 
desirable  qualifications  for  the  teacher.  These  were 
grouped  under  five  headings,  physical,  intellectual,  emo- 
tional, moral,  and  general.  Then  some  time  afterwards  it 
occurred  to  me  to  consider  whether  Jesus  met  the  pre- 
viously stated  ideal  specifications  or  not.  With  what 
result? 

I  will  append  the  list  and  let  you  try  it  for  yourself. 

Additional  Qualifications  of  the  Tea<:her: 
I.  Physical. 

1.  Health. 

2.  Good  presence. 

3.  A  speaking  eye. 

4.  An  effective  voice. 
II.  Intellectual. 

1.  Common  sense. 

2.  Intelligence. 

3.  Happy  use  of  language. 


188  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

4.  Idealism. 

III.  Emotional. 

1.  Cheerfulness. 

2.  Sympathy. 

3.  Disinterestedness. 

4.  Honor. 

5.  Enthusiasm. 

6.  Culture. 

7.  Courtesy. 

IV.  Volitional. 

1.  Executive  ability. 

2.  Willingness  to  work. 

3.  Ambition. 

4.  Patience. 

5.  Humility. 
V.  General. 

1.  An  avocation. 

2.  Sense  of  the  greatness  of  his  work. 

3.  Personality. 

How  would  you  criticize  this  list  for  teachers? 

Which  of  these  characteristics  does  Jesus  exemplify? 

Did  Jesus  have  ambition?  (Cf.  John  4:34,  Luke  12: 
50.)    In  what  sense? 

Is  "personality "a  comprehensive  term  including  all  the 
others? 

How  would  you  show  that  Jesus  possessed  the  charac- 
teristics that  you  assign  him?    Do  it  for  each  one. 

Would  you  change  the  grouping  of  any  one  of  the  char- 
acteristics? 

WTiy  is  it  desirable  that  teachers  should  have  an  avoca- 
tion?   Did  Jesus  have  one?    Did  Paul? 


HIS  QUALITIES  AS  TEACHER 


189 


This  standard  was  set  up  for  the  ideal  teacher  without 
Jesus  being  in  mind.  When  applied  to  him,  how  does  he 
meet  the  test?  Shall  we  say,  then,  that  he  is  an  ideal  for 
teachers,  and  also  real? 

Of  course,  the  list  given  above,  made  without  thought 
of  Jesus,  does  not  do  justice  to  him.  What  further  char- 
acteristics,^ then,  would  you  say  he  possessed? 

A  list  of  characteristics  could  be  made  in  answer  to  this 
question  half  as  long  as  the  personal  epithets  in  the  Eng- 
lish language,  but  it  would  not  be  necessary.  Make  your 
own  hst  of  significant  additions  to  the  one  given  above, 
check  in  the  following  list  the  characteristics  you  think 
Jesus  possessed  as  teacher,  and  compare  the  two  lists. 


Eugenic  birth. 

Physical  strength. 

Power  to  heal  the  body. 

Skill. 

Tempted. 

Loyalty. 

Courage. 

Prudence. 

Dignity. 

Sinlessness. 

Social  efficiency. 

Love  of  nature. 

Love  of  children. 

Pleasure  in  social  life. 

Friendliness. 

Passion  for  service. 


Love. 

Self-control. 

Self-sacrifice. 

Self-respect. 

Sincerity. 

Joyousness. 

Sorrow. 

Intensity. 

Anger. 

Gratitude. 

Reverence. 

Modesty. 

Dependence. 

Pray  erf  ulness. 

Artistic  feeling. 

Intuitive  knowledge. 


1  Cf.  the  author's  book:  "Jesus— Our  Standard,"  The  Abingdon  Press,  N.  Y., 
1918. 


190  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Reliance  on  others.  Alertness. 

Justice.  Positiveness. 

Authority.  Sincerity. 

Love  of  truth.  Dialectic  skill. 

Information.  Originality. 

Sense  of  mission.  Spirituality. 

Justify  each  of  the  characteristics  you  have  assigned 
him. 

What  contrasts  do  you  find  in  his  character? 
What  evidence  of  symmetry .^^   and  of  serenity?    What 
do  you  get  out  of  an  analytic  study  of  this  kind?    Some 
students  reject  it  as  not  worth  while. 

G.  Stanley  HalP  holds  that  the  real  Christ  is  the  psycho- 
logical Christ,  that  is,  the  important  thing  is  not  the  his- 
toric figure  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  but  the  figure  of  the 
Christ  as  we  conceive  him. 

What  do  you  think  of  this  view? 

On  the  basis  of  this  view  Hall  says  artists  should  present 
Jesus  as  large,  strong,  beautiful,  and  personally  magnetic 
(Vol.  I,  pp.  35-38). 
Which  of  these  four  do  you  think  he  was? 
Hall  also  says  that  the  six  essential  qualities  of  the 
personality  of  the  Christ  are  (1)  life  from  within,  (2)  moral 
struggle,  (3)  complexity  and  compositeness,  (4)  explora- 
tion of  all  the  higher  powers  of  man,  (5)  being  perennially 
in  his  prime,  and  (6)  realization  as  far  as  possible  of  all 
ideals. 

Again,  which  of  these  six  does  Jesus  as  presented  in 
the  gospels  possess? 


2  "Jesus,  the  Christ,  in  the  Light  of  Psychology,"  Doubleday,  Page  &  Co., 
N.  Y.,  1917. 


HIS  QUALITIES  AS  TEACHER  191 

What  does  Hall  omit  that  does  and  should  characterize 
the  Christ? 

Professor  G.  H.  Palmer^  enumerates  the  four  essential 
and  fundamental  characteristics  "which  every  teacher 
must  possess"  as  follows: 

"First,  a  teacher  must  have  an  aptitude  for  vicar ious- 
ness;  and  second,  an  already  accumulated  wealth;  and 
third,  an  ability  to  invigorate  life  through  knowledge; 
and  fourth,  a  readiness  to  be  forgotten." 

Which  of  these  characteristics  did  Jesus  possess?  Was 
he  ready  to  be  forgotten?    Why? 

Though  Professor  Palmer  was  writing  on  the  teacher  in 
general,  it  is  interesting  that,  in  commenting  on  his  sec- 
ond point,  he  should  find  Jesus  his  best  illustration,  as 
follows: 

**The  plan  of  the  Great  Teacher,  by  which  he  took  thirty 
years  for  acquisition  and  three  for  bestowal,  is  not  un- 
wise, provided  that  we  too  can  say,  Tor  their  sakes  I 
sanctify  myself.'" 

This  entire  essay  should  be  read  by  all  teachers. 

Still  another  mode  of  approach.  On  pages  192,  193  is  re- 
printed one  of  the  modern  blanks  for  helping  teachers  and 
supervisors  analyze  personality. 

Read  this  blank  through  first  very  carefully. 

Then  check  each  quality  which  you  think  Jesus  pos- 
sessed, and  put  a  question  mark  where  our  data  are  too 
inadequate  for  us  to  answer. 

Make  your  comment  at  the  end. 

Should  we  hesitate  to  give  in  this  way  a  careful  esti- 


»"The  Teacher,"  p.  8,  Boston,  1908. 


192 


JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 


1^1  Stf  . 

Hi:  Is 

Q 

Q)   r-i  C^  CO '^  *0  (O 


HIS  QUALITIES  AS  TEACHER 

School 

City 


193 


^  §  a 


-^1 
■si 


M 


;g  bo's  g 

ls§§ 


fe  M 


i    i    i    I    j    j    j    j    j    i    i    I    i    i    i 


3    Qt^ 


$i  a 


23 


'5 

o 


^  o  oi^  O  O  O  f>^  6  o  O.fa.l:!^  o.b   _ 

'^  6  a 5  a  s  a  ^ -S  a  a  a^s^s 2  a^  a  s^ 

!!!!!!!!!!!!!•!! 


o 


& 
g 

(3 


if 

0 

I 
I 


194  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

mate  of  Jesus  as  a  teacher  according  to  a  present-day 
rating  scale?    Why? 

Was  Jesus  "scholarly"?   "strict"?   "teachable"? 

What  result  do  you  get? 

Justify  assigning  Jesus  each  quality  which  you  have 
checked. 

Once  again,  with  a  colored  pencil,  check  off  your  own 
characteristics  as  a  teacher  or  leader  on  the  last  list 
above,  or  get  a  friend  to  do  it. 

Compare  your  own  rating  with  that  you  gave  Jesus. 

Recur  to  the  quality  of  serenity.  MacDougall^  calls  it 
"that  finest  flower  of  moral  growth."  The  self  rules 
"supreme  over  conduct,  the  individual  is  raised  above 
moral  conflict;  he  attains  character  in  the  fullest  sense 
and  a  completely  generalized  will." 

To  what  extent  in  this  sense  was  Jesus  serene? 


*  "Social  Psychology,"  p. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 

THE  SIGNIFICANCE  OF  JESUS  IN 
EDUCATIONAL  HISTORY 

At  the  end  of  a  study  like  this,  dealing  with  Jesus  as 
the  Great  Teacher,  some  of  you  would  like  to  know  how 
the  historians  of  education,  whose  business  it  is  to  record 
systematically  past  educational  events  of  worth-while 
significance  and  so  to  make  possible  the  understanding 
of  the  present  educational  situation  in  the  light  of  the 
past,  have  presented  Jesus. 

Monroe's  "Text-Book  in  the  History  of  Education," 
N.  Y.,  1905,  772  pp.,  omits  all  reference  to  Hebrew  and 
Jewish  education  and  to  Jesus. 

The  same  author's  "Brief  Course  in  the  History  of 
Education,"  N.  Y.,  1907,  409  pp.,  devotes  nearly  two 
pages  to  "Jewish  Education,"  but  omits  any  treatment 
of  Jesus.  Each  of  these  volumes,  however,  treats  "Early 
Christian  Education." 

Duggan's  "Student's  Text-Book  in  the  History  of 
Education,"  N.  Y.,  1916,  398  pp.,  devotes  one  chapter 
each  to  "Jewish  Education"  and  "Early  Christian  Edu- 
cation," but  gives  no  account  of  Jesus. 

Davidson's  "History  of  Education,"  N.  Y.,  1900,  292 
pp.,  treats  "Judsea"  and  "The  Christian  *Catecheticar 
School  of  Alexandria,"  but  omits  Jesus. 

Compayre's  "History  of  Pedagogy,"  translated  from 
the  French,  pubHshed  in  Boston,  1885,  598  pp.,  devotes 

195 


196  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

three  pages  to  "The  Early  Christians,"  and  contains  the 
single  and  questionable  statement  about  Jesus:  "The 
doctrine  of  Christ  was  at  first  a  reaction  of  free  will  and 
of  personal  dignity  against  the  despotism  of  the  state" 
(p.  61). 

Regener's  *'Geschichte  der  Pddagogik,^*  Langensalza, 
1898,  222  pp.,  includes  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  but 
not  the  Jews  and  Christians. 

Cubberley's  very  complete  "Syllabus  of  Lectures  on  the 
History  of  Education,"  second  edition,  N.  Y.,  1904,  361 
pp.,  devotes  a  chapter  each  to  "Early  Hebrew  Educa- 
tion" and  "Early  Christian  Education,"  but  does  not 
mention  Jesus. 

Aspinwall's  "Outlines  of  the  History  of  Education," 
N.  Y.,  1912,  195  pp.,  treats  "Hebrew"  and  "Early  Chris- 
tian" education,  but  not  Jesus. 

Taylor's  "Syllabus  of  the  History  of  Education," 
Boston,  1909,  147  pp.,  contains  the  single  entry:  "Edu- 
cational bearings  of  Christ's  doctrines"  (p.  31). 

Graves's  "History  of  Education  before  the  Middle 
Ages,"  N.  Y.,  1909,  304  pp.,  devotes  a  chapter  each  to 
"Israel  and  Judsea"  and  "Early  Christianity,"  but  gives 
no  account  of  Jesus. 

The  same  author's  "Student's  History  of  Education," 
N.  Y.,  1915,  453  pp.,  contains  accounts  of  Jewish  and 
Christian  education,  but  nothing  of  Jesus. 

However,  in  1919,  under  the  revival  of  interest  in 
what  Jesus  really  taught,  due  to  the  World  War,  there 
appeared  Dean  Graves's  book:  "What  Did  Jesus  Teach?" 
(N.  Y.),  195  pp.  The  author  says:  "The  book  is  simply 
the  product  of  a  History  of  Education  man,  describing 


JESUS  IN  EDUCATIONAL  HISTORY       197 

a  well-known  road,  when  viewed  from  his  own  angle." 
The  book  contains  an  outline  of  the  content  of  the  teach- 
ing of  Jesus,  with  one  chapter  devoted  to  his  methods. 
But  not  even  so  has  the  author  yet  placed  Jesus  in  edu- 
cational history. 

One  may  properly  wonder  why  the  record  given  above 
is  as  it  is.  Why  do  these  histories  of  education,  like  the 
inn  at  Bethlehem,  have  "no  room"  for  him?  One  can 
only  conjecture  the  answer.  It  is  not  through  the  failure 
to  recognize  the  importance  of  Christianity  in  the  world, 
but  the  failure  to  sense  the  significance  of  Jesus  as  a 
teacher  among  the  teachers  of  the  world.  This  failure 
may  in  part  be  due  to  the  obscuring  of  the  historic  figure 
of  Jesus  as  teacher  by  theological  interpretations,  and 
the  real  diflSculty  of  discovering  and  presenting  the  great 
Prophet-Teacher  of  Nazareth.  And  also  those  who  are 
interested  in  education  have  not  known  about  Jesus, 
and  those  interested  in  Jesus  have  not  known  about 
education. 

But  the  story  is  different  in  the  case  of  the  four  follow- 
ing books: 

Painter's  "History  of  Education,"  N.  Y.,  1894,  343 
pp.,  built  mainly  on  Schmidt's  '^Geschichte  der  Pddago- 
gik,'*  devotes  four  pages  to  "The  Founder  of  Christianity." 
He  says: 


"Leaving  out  of  account  Christ's  divine  natm^e,  before 
which  we  bow  as  a  mystery,  we  may  trace,  as  in  the  case 
of  other  men,  those  influences  which  contributed  to  his 
intellectual  and  spiritual  development"  (p.  83). 

"Buddha,  Confucius,  Mohammed — to  say  nothing  of 


198  JESUS—THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Greek  and  Roman  sages — ^are  not  worthy  to  be  compared 
with  Christ'*  (p.  84). 

The  lessons  in  method  he  gives  us,  according  to  Painter, 
are  sympathy,  adaptation  to  the  capacity  of  his  hearers, 
use  of  outward  circumstance,  expectation  only  of  a 
gradual  development,  insisting  only  on  practical  and 
fundamental  truths. 

From  Paroz  this  author  quotes:  "Jesus  Christ,  in  found- 
ing a  new  religion,  has  laid  the  foundations  of  a  new 
education  in  the  bosom  of  humanity,"  and  from  Karl 
Schmidt:  "By  word  and  deed  in  and  with  his  whole  life 
Christ  is  the  teacher  and  educator  of  mankind." 

Among  the  influences  of  Christianity  on  education 
Painter  notes  the  removal  of  "the  fetters  of  national 
limits  and  prejudices,"  the  attachment  of  due  importance 
to  the  individual,  sweeping  away  false  distinctions  of 
class  and  caste,  abolishing  slavery,  overthrowing  the 
oppressions  of  society,  elevating  marriage  into  a  divine 
rite,  and  regarding  children  as  the  gift  of  God. 

Seeley's  "History  of  Education,"  N.  Y.,  Third  Revised 
Edition,  1914,  376  pp.,  devotes  five  pages  to  "The  Great 
Teacher,"  considering  his  Ufe,  character,  and  work  as  a 
teacher. 

"The  spirit  of  Christianity  has  led  to  the  founding 
of  hospitals,  asylums,  and  institutions  of  mercy  every- 
where; to  the  establishment  of  schools  and  colleges;  to 
the  universal  spread  of  education;  to  the  uplifting  of  the 
individual;  to  the  furtherance  of  human  brotherhood; 
and  to  the  fostering  of  peace  among  men  and  nations" 
(p.  100).  » 


JESUS  IN  EDUCATIONAL  HISTORY       199 

Among  the  important  characteristics  of  Jesus'  method 
Seeley  notes:  (1)  "It  was  suited  to  his  hearers";  (2)  "full 
of  illustrations";  (3)  "simple  and  yet  logical";  (4)  "drawn 
from  nature";  (5)  "it  elevated  the  truth,  and  sought  to 
enforce  it";  and  (6)  "it  was  earnest  and  full  of  sym- 
pathy." He  loved  little  children.  "Every  one  of  the 
principles  above  stated  is  essential  to  the  teacher,  and 
these  principles  contain  the  sum  and  substance  of  all 
true  pedagogy"  (p.  104). 

McCormick's  "History  of  Education,"  Washington, 
1915,  401  pp.,  gives  three  pages  to  "The  Teaching  of 
Christ."    He  says: 

"The  study  of  His  life  and  work  from  the  educational 
viewpoint  is  of  great  historical  and  practical  value" 
(p.  66). 

"There  is  noticeable  in  the  method  employed  by  our 
Lord  a  twofold  adjustment  to  the  needs  and  conditions 
of  the  time.  First,  the  general  adaptation  of  sublime  and 
abstract  truths  to  the  capacity  of  the  human  intelligence; 
second,  the  particular  application  of  these  truths  to  indi- 
vidual instances.  .  .  .  Finally,  our  Lord  was  the  living 
model  of  His  teaching.  .  .  .  Furthermore,  our  Lord  in- 
sured the  everlasting  teaching  of  His  doctrine  by  making 
His  Church  a  teaching  body  under  the  guidance  of  the 
Spirit  of  Truth"  (pp.  68,  69). 

Boyer's  "History  of  Education,"  N.  Y.,  1919,  pp.  461, 
devotes  eleven  pages  to  "Christ."  The  education  of 
Jesus  is  traced  to  the  schooling  of  the  synagogue,  the 
yearly  festivals,  his  intimate  contact  with  nature  and 
man,  and  to  the  Holy  Scriptures.  "Jesus  became  the 
one  incomparable  teacher  of  all  ages"  (p.  103). 


200  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

"The  immeasurable  dignity  and  worth  which  these  two 
Christian  doctrines  [the  brotherhood  and  immortaHty  of 
man]  give  to  individuality  illumine,  as  if  in  letters  of  gold, 
the  function  of  education  as  adjustment  to  life  itseK — 
life  now  and  life  hereafter." 

"The  distinguishing  obligations  of  Christian  education" 
are  considered  under  the  following  topics:  Nationality, 
caste,  slavery,  women,  and  children. 

"The  Methods  of  Christ"  are  treated  under  the  three 
heads:  Insight,  sympathy,  and  skill. 

Speaking  for  ourselves  now,  what  place  in  educational 
history  shall  we  assign  to  Jesus?  A  question  of  this  kind 
requires  an  objective  answer,  based  on  fact,  not  personal 
loyalty  or  opinion. 

The  "World  Almanac"  for  1920  distributes  the  reli- 
gious membership  of  the  world  as  follows: 

Jews 14,972,000 

Miscellaneous 21,375,000 

Shintoists 25,015,000 

Buddhists 140,047,000 

Animists 161,272,000 

Hindus 215,512,000 

Mohammedans 227,040,000 

Confucianists  and  Taoists 310,925,000 

Christians 576,000,000 

The  "Christians"  include  Roman  Catholic,  Eastern 
CathoHc,  and  Protestants,  288,000,000,  121,000,000,  and 
167,000,000  respectively.  All  together  the  Christians 
are  over  one-third  the  population  of  the  earth  and  sur- 
pass their  nearest  competitor  by  about  eighty  per  cent. 
The  teachings  of  Jesus  affect  today  nearly  twice  as  many 


JESUS  IN  EDUCATIONAL  HISTORY       201 

persons  as  those  of  any  other  teacher.  As  a  simple  quan- 
titative fact,  Jesus  is  today  the  world's  greatest  teacher. 

If  we  think  of  quality  instead  of  quantity,  and  judge 
teachers  and  teachings  by  the  fruits  of  their  followers, 
we  note  that  the  two  continents  leading  the  world's 
civilization  are  Europe  and  America,  and  these  are, 
nominally  at  least,  Christian.  It  was  the  absence  of 
real  Christianity  that  started  the  World  War  of  1914- 
1918,  and  the  presence  of  defensive  Christianity  that 
saved  civilization. 

The  statement  that  Jesus,  judged  by  quantitative  and 
quaUtative  results,  is  the  world's  greatest  teacher  need 
not  be  construed  as  minimizing  the  work  of  Confucius, 
Lao-tsze,  Mohammed,  and  Buddha.  These  also  are 
world-teachers.  It  is,  or  should  be,  the  belief  of  Chris- 
tians that  Jesus  came  not  to  destroy  Moses  and  these 
others,  but  to  fulfil  them  all. 

Western  history  has  not  missed  the  point  in  dividing 
time  by  the  birth  of  Christ.  With  him  the  new  human 
era  began. 

The  history  of  education  and  of  man  may  be  written 
from  the  standpoint  of  the  protest  of  the  individual 
against  conformity  to  social  customs,  as  the  endeavor 
of  the  individual  and  society  to  come  to  terms  with 
each  other.  This  is  the  standpoint  of  progress  through 
individual  variation.  In  the  main  society  wins,  and  the 
individual  loses,  mayhap  his  life,  but  not  until  he  has 
raised  the  ideals  of  society  by  so  much. 

In  Jesus  we  meet  in  both  practice  and  theory  utmost 
individuality  combined  with  utmost  sociality.  As  against 
institutions  he  stood  for  the  man,  but  for  man  only  as  a 


202  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

servant  of  the  higher  life  of  society.  This  paradox  he 
hved  and  also  formulated:  "He  that  loseth  his  life  shall 
find  it.**  The  loss  of  life  in  service  is  sociality,  the  finding 
it  again  in  self-realization  by  service  is  individuality.  In 
this  solution  Jesus  shows  himself  the  master  of  the  prob- 
lem of  life.  And  the  steps  in  our  social  progress  are  suc- 
cessive approximations  to  his  solution.  This  solution  he 
reached  by  the  aid  of  the  Hebrew  prophets,  Amos,  Hosea, 
Isaiah,  and  Jeremiah — great  individualists  all,  who  found 
their  lives  in  service  of  society,  conceived  by  them  as  the 
kingdom  of  Jehovah. 

In  short,  we  conclude  that  the  place  of  Jesus  in  educa- 
tional history  is  central  and  greatest,  on  the  basis  not  of 
personal  loyalty,  but  objective  fact,  because: 

1.  His  followers  today  outnumber  those  of  any  other 
teacher. 

2.  The  nations  that  profess  his  name,  though  following 
him  afar  off,  lead  the  world's  civilization. 

3.  He  lived  and  taught  the  solution  of  man's  greatest 
problem :  the  adjustment  of  the  claims  of  the  individual  to 
those  of  society. 

4.  He  taught  the  highest  moral  and  spiritual  truths: 
God  is  father,  man  is  brother,  the  will  is  free,  the  soul  is 
immortal,  the  ideal  social  order  is  to  come  on  the  earth, 
women  and  children  are  to  be  honored,  the  life  of  sacri- 
ficial love  is  supreme. 

5.  He  taught  these  truths  simply,  using  effectively  the 
pedagogic  arts,  so  that  "the  common  people  heard  him 
gladly.'*    Some  of  these  arts  this  book  has  reviewed. 

6.  He  committed  his  teachings  wholly  to  a  choice  few 
whom  he  trained  as  his  witnesses. 


JESUS  IN  EDUCATIONAL  HISTORY       203 

7.  He  taught  from  the  highest  motives — love,  sym- 
pathy, compassion,  and  the  sense  of  divine  mission. 

8.  He  had  the  five  essential  qualifications  of  a  world- 
teacher — namely,  a  world- view,  knowledge  of  his  subject- 
matter,  knowledge  of  his  pupils,  aptness  at  teaching, 
and  a  character  worthy  of  imitation  in  all  respects.  He 
Hved  what  he  taught. 

There  are  multitudes  who  are  ready  and  willing  to  say 
with  one  of  his  most  learned  pupils:  **We  know  that  thou 
art  a  teacher  come  from  God,"  and  with  one  of  his  most 
intimate  followers:  "Thou  hast  the  words  of  eternal  life." 

To  the  student:  In  this  chapter  you  have  not  been 
asked  to  cooperate  in  the  search  for  the  truth  as  in  the 
preceding  chapters.  One  reason  is  that  the  material 
covered  is  outside  our  text,  the  New  Testament,  and  the 
other  is  that,  having  come  with  me  so  far,  you  are  en- 
titled at  the  end  to  know  my  thoughts  not  as  question- 
marks,  but  as  affirmations.  This  situation,  however,  need 
not  prevent  our  having  a  real  discussion  on  the  proper 
placing  of  Jesus  in  educational  history. 


CHAPTER  XXVII 
SUMMARY:  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

What  are  the  advantages  of  a  summary? 

What  are  the  difficulties  in  reading  a  summary  without 
having  first  read  the  pages  summarized? 

What  is  a  summary? 

How  would  you  summarize  the  essential  points  in  the 
preceding  pages? 

The  teaching  situation  is  complex,  though  it  may  easily 
be  resolved  into  its  essential  elements — namely,  teacher, 
pupil,  lesson,  aim  of  teacher,  method  of  teaching,  and 
environment. 

The  conversation  of  Jesus  with  the  woman  of  Samaria 
is  an  object  lesson  in  teaching  in  all  these  respects. 

Jesus  began  by  winning  attention  through  interest, 
then  he  established  some  point  of  contact  with  his  hearer  (s) 
on  the  physical  or  spiritual  plane. 

As  a  teacher  he  was  not  only  a  tactician  with  methods, 
but  a  strategist  with  objectives.  His  greatest  objective 
was  to  share  with  men  that  sense  of  union  with  the 
Father  which  he  enjoyed. 

Jesus  based  his  teaching  on  the  vital  problems  in  the 
lives  of  his  pupils. 

Though  not  a  Greek,  he  was  as  ready  to  converse  in  a 
profitable  way  as  was  Socrates,  and  he  led  a  more  public 
life,  though  shorter,  than  did  Socrates,  because  he  trav- 
eled more. 

He  asked  and  answered  questions  to  stimulate  self- 

204 


JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER        205 

expression,  desiring  conviction  rather  than  persuasion  on 
the  part  of  his  followers.  His  questions  are  better  than 
those  of  Socrates,  from  whom  "the  Socratic  art"  is  named, 
because  they  are  not  "leading." 

He  used  the  discoiu'se  at  many  different  times  before 
many  different  groups  on  many  different  themes,  but 
always  in  a  more  or  less  informal  way. 

He  told  stories  with  a  point,  the  parables,  which  his 
auditors  did  not  always  understand,  but  which  always 
made  them  think,  and  led  the  spiritually  minded  to 
inquire  of  him  their  meaning. 

He  both  knew  and  used  the  old  scriptures,  for  the 
nutriment  of  his  own  soul  and  as  a  common  meeting- 
ground  with  the  religious  minds  of  his  day. 

He  never  let  the  occasion  slip,  but  utilized  it  as  it  arose 
to  clarify  thought  and  to  guide  life. 

The  principle  of  apperception  is  recognized  in  his 
words:  "He  that  hath  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear,"  and 
all  his  parables  present  the  less  familiar  in  terms  of  the 
more  familiar.    Even  so,  he  was  often  misunderstood. 

He  used  the  principle  of  contrast  to  vivify  the  por- 
trayal of  truth,  concrete  examples  to  bring  the  abstract 
near,  symbols  to  make,  if  possible,  difficult  meanings 
plain,  and  wonderful  imagery  to  enhance  the  appeal  to 
the  imagination  and  so  to  the  powers  of  conviction. 

He  cared  more  for  individuals  than  for  crowds,  though 
he  would  often  minister  to  crowds,  perhaps  with  a  view 
to  reaching  individuals. 

His  disciples  he  trained  as  witnesses  of  his  mainly  by 
the  processes  of  personal  association,  individualizing  them, 
and  meeting  the  needs  of  each,  especially  Peter. 


206  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

The  work  accomplished  by  Jesus  and  also  under  his 
tutelage  was  highly  motivated,  through  the  awakening 
of  spiritual  and  altruistic  impulses  rather  than  those  of 
personal  advancement,  though  not  to  the  exclusion  of 
the  latter. 

In  a  way  most  interesting  to  uncover,  Jesus  probed 
the  depths  of  human  nature,  and  secured  most  of  the 
native  reactions  of  man,  though  some,  like  rivalry,  he 
did  not  consciously  appeal  to,  and  some,  like  sex,  he 
sublimated. 

All  the  methods  of  impression  he  used  were  but  as 
means  to  expression  as  an  end.  Jesus  was  far  more 
pragmatic  than  either  idealistic  or  mystic. 

Jesus  appreciated  childhood  and  made  its  characteristics 
identical  with  those  of  membership  in  the  Kingdom. 

In  a  way  not  surprising  but  confirmatory  of  our  pre- 
vious impressions,  Jesus  embodies  those  qualities  of  the 
Teacher  commonly  set  up  as  ideal. 

Though,  surprising  to  relate,  many  of  our  best  his- 
tories of  education  do  not  refer  to  Jesus,  by  common 
consent  he  is  regarded  as  the  Great  Teacher  of  the  human 
race.  A  comparison  of  his  characteristics  with  those  of 
other  world  teachers  does  not  alter  this  conclusion. 

As  the  Appendix  indicates,  one  who  was  a  master  of 
the  subject  could  duplicate  the  length  of  this  volume  on 
other  phases  of  the  teaching  ministry  of  Jesus. 

As  we  have  followed  these  discussions  we  have  doubt- 
less repeatedly  gotten  the  impression  that  the  problems 
of  teaching  which  we  ourselves  face  are  similar  to  those 
of  Jesus,  and  that  the  solutions  he  found  may  aid  us. 

Jesus  is  the  Master  Teacher.    Have  we  made  him  ours.'^ 


APPENDIX 
TOPICS  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

This  appendix  is  a  catch-bag.  All  the  left-over  prob- 
lems, really  entitled  to  a  chapter  apiece,  here  receive 
mention  only.  It  is  a  way  of  saying  what  rt  is  that  you 
have  not  said. 

One  advantage  of  this  arrangement  is  that  you  fihally 
finish  a  manuscript.  Another  is  that  your  book  is  not  so 
long.  Still  another  is  that  it  suggests  that  the  study  of 
the  subject  is  not  finished.  Besides,  it  makes  a  scrappy 
list  to  which  the  reader  can  readily  add,  in  the  interest  of 
completeness. 

1.  Jesus — a  Rabbi. 

Show  from  the  records  that  Jesus  was  a  teacher. 
By  what  titles  was  he  addressed? 
How  did  he  entitle  himself.'* 
What  verbs  describe  his  work? 

2.  The  Preparation  of  Jesus  as  Teacher. 
The  New  Testament  only  suggests  this. 

You  must  go  to  the  lives  of  Jesus,  to  the  four  histories 
of  education  mentioned  in  Chap.  XXVI,  and  to  the 
Bible  dictionaries. 

This  topic  is  of  primary  importance  in  understanding 
Jesus*  work  as  teacher. 

3.  Teaching  by  Action. 

For  example,  setting  a  little  child  in  their  midst,  the 
triumphal  entry,  and  washing  the  disciples'  feet. 
Some  might  regard  these  as  object  lessons. 

4.  Accommodation. 

*T  have  yet  many  things  to  say  unto  you,  but  ye  can 
not  bear  them  now"  (John  16: 12). 

"If  I  told  you  earthly  things  and  ye  believe  not,  how 
shall  ye  believe  if  I  tell  you  heavenly  things?"  (John 
3:  U.) 

207 


208  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

The  reticence  of  Jesus — the  thmgs  he  did  not  tell. 
This  subject  is  closely  related  to  apperception. 

5.  The  Humor  of  Jesus. 

See  the  author's  book,  "Jesus — Our  Standard,"  pp. 
150-154. 

6.  The  Paradoxes  of  Jesus. 
"The  first  shall  be  last." 
Collect  them  all. 

Consider  their  effectiveness  as  forms  of  speech. 
Resolve  them,  that  is,  state  their  meaning  in  non- 
paradoxical  form. 

7.  The  Epigrams  of  Jesus. 

"Sufficient  unto  the  day  is  the  evil  thereof"  Matt.  6 :  34) . 

Collect  as  many  as  you  can  find. 

Why  may  he  have  used  this  form  of  speech? 

8.  His  Use  of  Proverbs. 

"One  soweth  and  another  reapeth"  (John  4:37). 
"Physician,  heal  thyself"  (Luke  4:23).  See  John  16: 
25,  29. 

What  is  the  significance  of  proverbs? 

Why  did  Jesus  quote  them? 

9.  His  Use  of  Folk-Lore,  including  Weather-Lore. 
Is  there  such  use? 

What  do  you  think  of  Matt.  12:  43^5? 
Did  Jesus  make  use  of  views  for  purposes  of  illustra- 
tion that  personally  he  did  not  accept? 
See  Matt.  16:  2,  3;  Luke  21: 11,  25. 

10.  The  Miracles  as  a  Method  of  Teaching. 

"His  miracles  are  lessons,  parables  in  deed."  Do  you 
agree? 

Explain  and  illustrate. 

Why  did  Jesus  curse  the  barren  fig-tree? 

11.  Oral  and  Aural  Methods. 

Why  did  Jesus  not  write  more  and  appeal  to  the  eye? 
Is  the  ear  a  more  primitive  organ  of  instruction? 
How  did  Jesus  anticipate  his  teaching  would  survive? 

12.  Positive  and  Negative  Methods. 


TOPICS  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY  209 

Did  Jesus  affirm  or  deny  more? 
Did  he  develop  or  repress  more? 

Collect  and  compare  his  affirmative  and  negative 
statements. 

Compare  with  Pharisaism  and  legalism. 

13.  His  Eloquence. 

What  are  the  elements  of  eloquence? 
To  what  extent  are  these  elements  to  be  found  in  the 
teachings  of  Jesus? 

"He  was  a  man  of  supreme  eloquence,"  says  one  writer. 

14.  His  Economy  of  Vocabulary. 

His  art  of  condensation  and  omission. 

His  regard  for  words. 

See  Matt.  12:  34;  23:  8;  5:  37;  John  6:  68;  15:  3. 

15.  His  Use  of  Rhythmic  Utterance. 

Not  even  the  English  translation  of  the  Greek  version 
of  his  Aramaic  original  can  conceal  it. 

"We  piped  unto  you  and  ye  did  not  dance"  (Luke  7* 
32  seq.). 

"Every  one  that  exalteth  himself  shall  be  abased" 
(Luke  18: 14). 

"Ask,  and  it  shall  be  given  you"  (Matt.  7:  7  seq.) 

Collect  other  examples. 

See  Farrar,  "The  Life  of  Lives." 

16.  Jesus  as  a  Dialectician. 
What  does  this  mean? 

Collect  examples  of  his  dialectic. 

What  dialectic  qualities  does  he  possess? 

See  "Jesus— Our  Standard,"  pp.  214-228. 

17.  His  Type  of  Leadership. 
How  many  types  are  there? 
To  which  does  Jesus  belong? 

See  Brent,  "Leadership,"  Chap.  VI;  Larned,  "A  Study 
of  Greatness  in  Men";  Home,  "Leadership  of  Bible 
Study  Groups,"  Chap.  II. 

18.  His  Living  and  His  Teaching. 
Which  is  primary? 


210  JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Why  was  his  teaching  so  effective?    See  Acts  1:1. 

19.  Aids  to  Memory. 

Is  it  not  remarkable  that  we  have  so  many  of  the  words 
of  Jesus  .^^  He  wrote  nothing,  neither  did  any  of  his  dis- 
ciples till  years  after  his  death.  How  do  you  account  for 
this.^ 

20.  The  Methods  of  the  Disciples. 

How  did  the  men  taught  by  Jesus  themselves  teach  in 
turn? 

See  the  Acts  and  the  General  Epistles. 
Compare  their  methods  with  those  of  Jesus. 
Here  is  a  great  field  for  study. 

21.  The  Methods  of  Paul. 

Study  his  deeds,  words,  and  writings. 
Contrast  his  methods  with  those  of  Jesus. 
Do  the  methods  of  Paul  show  that  he  was  trained  as  a 
theologian? 

22.  The  Origin  of  the  Teaching  Methods  of  Jesus. 

A  diflBcult  question,  involving  at  least  first-hand  in- 
formation concerning  the  synagogue  schools,  one  of  which 
was  probably  at  Nazareth;  keen  surmise  as  to  how  the 
eighteen  silent  years  were  spent;  familiarly  with  the 
Old  Testament;  and  a  general  acquaintance  with  the 
rabbinical  college  in  Jerusalem. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

HOW  DID  JESUS  TEACH? 

Brown,  C.  R.,  "Christ  as  a  Teacher"  m  The  Encyclo- 
paedia of  Sunday   Schools   and  Rehgious   Education, 

N.  Y.,  1915. 
Dubois,    P.,     The   Natural   Way   in   Moral   Training. 

Chap.  I. 
Ellis,  G.  H.,  "The  Pedagogy  of  Jesus"  in  Ped.  Sem.,  1902. 
Farrar,  F.  W.,  The  Life  of  Lives,  N.  Y.,  1915,  Chaps. 

XX  and  XXL 
Gilbert, 'G.  H.,  The  Student's  Life  of  Jesus,  N.  Y.,  1898, 

Chap.  IH/^ 
Graves,  F.  P.,  What  Did  Jesus  Teach?    N.  Y.,  1919, 

Chaps.  II  and  III. 
Hall,  G.  Stanley,  Jesus,  the  Christ,  in  the  Light  of 

Psychology,  N.  Y.,  1917,  Chap.  V. 
Hastings,  James  (Ed.),  Dictionary  of  Christ  and  Gospels, 

2  vols.,  N.  Y.,  1906.    Various  articles. 
Hinsdale,  B.  A.,  Jesus  as  a  Teacher,  St.  Louis,  1895. 
Hitchcock,  A.  W.,  The  Psychology  of  Jesus,  Boston, 

1908,  Chap.  IX. 
HoRNE,  H.  H.,  The  Leadership  of  Bible  Study  Groups 

N.  Y.,  1912. 

Modem  Problems  as  Jesus  Saw  them,  N.  Y.,  1918. 

Jesus— Our  Standard,  N.  Y.,  1918. 

Story-Telling,  Questioning,  and  Studying,  N.  Y.,  1916. 
Marquis,  J.  A.,  Learning  to  Teach  from  the  Master 

Teacher,  Philadelphia,  1913. 
Mathews,  Shailer,  "The  Method  of  Jesus"  in  Monroe, 

Cyclopaedia  of  Education,  5  vols.,  N.  Y.,  1911.    Art. 

"New  Testament." 

211 


212        JESUS— THE  MASTER  TEACHER 

Ramsay,  W.    The  Education  of  Christ,  N.  Y.,  1902. 

Sand  AY,  W.,  Art.  **  Jesus  Christ"  in  Hastings,  Bible  Dic- 
tionary. 

Smith,  Frank  Webster,  Jesus — ^Teacher,  N.  Y.,  1916. 

Stalker,  James,  Imago  Christi,  N.  Y.,  1889,  Chap.  XIV. 

Wendt,  H.  H.,  The  Teachings  of  Jesus  (translated).  Vol. 
I,  pp.  106-150. 

Wilson,  P.  W.,  The  Christ  We  Forget,  N.  Y.,  1917. 

Winchester,  B.  S.,  The  Message  of  the  Master  Teacher, 
Boston,  1917. 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  BATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 

AN    INITIAL    FlNE~^OF     25     CFMtq 

OVERDUE.    ^°    *'°°    "'^     ™^    ^^-NTH     olv 


JAN  3Q  1933 

FEBl 


17Apr'53Hfi 
1953  LV 


^^P  22    , 


) 


28Sep'49HJ 


-  6l-eb5  2L 


8S8p'53PWy 
OCT?    B53|! 


APR  3  0  196} 

LD  21-50m-8,32 


YB  28(38 


